Survival Guide: Azeroth
by Servant Ruler
Summary: EMIYA was reincarnated into another world. It was a world embroiled in thousands of years of war. Better yet, he was reincarnated in a time just before another war would erupt. Best thing was, his enemies were beings with near god-like powers and with innumerable armies! How fun![Gamer][Semi-Crackish]
1. Chapter 1

**Please read the notes before you start reading because some of you might regret it.**

Notes:

So it's been a while since I took up writing as a hobby. With almost nothing to read and play on my spare time, I decided to write something. I've always wanted to write a story with game elements. So this is my first attempt at something like this. It will be a bit Crack-ish.

Just a little warning. I don't want some toxic reviewers ranting about how shitty I am. Lol. I get enough of that in my life.

OOC

C.G. EMIYA would develop differently, even some of the canon characters of Warcraft.

Mature tag

It's rated M for a reason. It's gonna have gore, lemons and all those kind of content.

AU?- Alternate Universe

I'll try my best not to stray from canon, specially with the lores and world elements. But I would inevitably make mistakes about things I don't know. I'm also heavily relying on Blizzard-verse rules not Nasuverse since the story is going to take place there.

Game/r Elements

This starts at c3.

Harem

Some people hate harems. If you do, then I suggest you quit reading this. But I'm mostly just gonna use the harem to induce humor. I think... gonna limit it at 4 but 'might' just add one more if needed.

Additional tags: Fantasy, Adventure, Humor, Romantic Subplot, Unreliable Narrator

A lot of thanks to my betareader '**YowatUp**' for his help on this. They're the ones who corrected the shit ton of mistakes I made and have this story readable.

This is the last time I'll be posting notes before a chapter on this story. So with that please read and enjoy.

Disclaimer: I don't own warcraft or FS/N

* * *

-**0**-

_Time can be defined as the indefinite continued progress of existence and events in the past, present and future regarded as a whole. The sciences claim that time is and should be relatively associated to space. While mages claim that time is connected to fate._

_Now let's begin with the scientist's perspective. Stagnant space is nothing but an object. Time without space is nothing but an aspect. Several theories from both the scientific and magic community prove this._

_But how about fate? How is it connected to time? Now the subject of our exhibit today will give us answers to questions that has plagued both communities for hundreds of years._

_According to a scroll retrieved from an old ruins in Dalaran, Time once was more closely intertwined with fate than it should be. Time was once similar to only a single river. How did it branch out to become what we call today as the Kaleidoscope, the Infinite Parallel Worlds?_

_We have no further proofs or documents on this subject aside from a few references by the famous Archmage Ragus Timewalker._

_Now? What proof do we have to claim such that there had only been one true timeline? Ladies and gentlemen let present to you the Dichronos Codex, a journal written by a grandchild of the God of Time Nozdormu himself._

-Excerpt from statements during the press release of Dichronos' Codex by the College of Arcadia's Ancient History and Archeology Department, Year 5019 of the Age of Mortals

* * *

-**I**-

In the swirling chaos of the Great Beyond, amidst the sea of stars and gigantic planets, an event was occurring that would forever change the fate of this World. An errant soul from a distant branch of the vast multiverse travelled through a gap in space to miraculously survive and successfully arrive in Blizzard-verse, a timeline so different from Nasuverse.

The soul was that of a nameless hero, the last Hero of the modern era before the demise of Gaia. How this came to be, not even the ageless watchers could decipher what brought about such a phenomenon.

With nowhere to go, the soul slowly dissolved into the nearest sentient that contained life. The soul was absorbed into the cycle of life and death of this world. But not before it was corrupted? Tainted? Nay, mutated would be a better word to describe it.

The soul fragile as it was already had a _twisted, _or rather distorted property of its own that it could no longer be tainted any further by the chaotic energies of the netherworld. But it was still affected by the fel magic.

The laws of this world affected the soul more than it should changing it further. A few months later, the soul would be given flesh as it would grow in a womb. It would be much much later before the memories that were stored within that soul, protected from being erased through sheer virtue of being so distorted, would awaken finalizing the fate of the child. It was to walk the cursed and burdened path of a Hero.

But who would have thought that something so diminutive would forever change the world?

And thus the story begins...

* * *

**-II-**

The sun was slowly rising over the peaceful forest with mist drifting upwards to create a rather beautiful scene that would make any lover of nature sigh with admiration. The chirping of birds and chittering of small creatures could be heard in the distance. Unfortunately the peace would not last for long with the pained roar of a beast echoing over the forest sending flocks of birds flying away from the disturbance.

A young boy appearing at about the age of an 7-9 years old human was running through the forest with a bow slung over one shoulder, beside the bow slung over the other shoulder was a quiver of green feathered arrows. With inhumane grace, acrobatic ability and speed, the boy leapt from vine to tree branch then into another tree.

What was surprising was that the boy was not the one being chased, rather he was the one in pursuit as he swiftly kneeled on the branch of a massive tree. His stance perfect, his motions smooth and flawless as he drew an arrow, aimed and let it loose.

The arrows though small customized to fit the short recurve bow embedded itself deeply on the fur of the massive red eyed bear slowing it down.

Another arrow followed shortly after piercing the beast's hind leg. Left with no choice, the enraged bear turned around to confront its elusive foe. It had tried to chase down the two legged creature but failed as it easily slipped from its grasp. Instead, it earned an arrow to the eye for its effort barely missing its brain before deciding that the small creature was too dangerous and chose to run away.

"Rooooooaaaarr."

In a last act of desperation, the massive bear easily thrice the size of a normal one charged at the child. The child nimbly retreated higher into the tree. His right hand taking another arrow and aimed at the magic beast. The greenish purple hue of light emanating from the metal arrowhead brightened before it flew towards its target.

The bear roared up at him, that was its last mistake as another arrow found itself lodged into the bears mouth. The bear weakened from the long night of pursuit and poisoning finally went down as it sagged against the tree nearly toppling it down.

The young boy let out a sigh as he waited for a few more minutes before shooting another arrow at the beast. He received no response confirming that it was dead.

The bear had been sighted near a village by a group of merchants who were luckily going towards north away from it towards the city of Silvermoon, the High Elven Capital. The bear had pursued them for while before giving up with the merchant caravan easily outrunning the beast.

They had sent a message by falcon back to the village to warn them of the danger in case it attacked. The boy had overheard the rumors from the guards by chance who were gathering volunteers to put the beast down about two weeks ago.

He had been on a quest then and was just passing by.

They had attempted to hunt it down but failed miserably with the beast's cunning and strange ability of melding with the forest turning it invisible going against them. With eight casualties, the guards instead decided to call back the hunt and post a bounty on its head. It was better to have specialists deal with it.

They had instead further tightened their guard around the village just in case it attacked. And attack it did killing ten innocents before the guards were able to drive it back.

The boy slowly trekked towards his fallen foe, his hair becoming visible under the light of the sun as he strode through the clearing revealing red hair and pointed ears. His softly glowing amber eyes had a sharp glint to them as he pulled a dagger from the sheath strapped on the lower part of his back. His long eyebrows, the same color as his hair, his inhumane grace and appearance indicated he was not human.

The skin under his dark green cloak was fair with a bit of tan to it. This key features would have distinguished him as a high elf if only he did not have amber eyes. Eyes that ostracized him from most children his age. Amber eyes were rare though not unheard of among his kind but they were a symbol of great potential and an inclination towards evil.

Two of the greatest villain in Elvenkind have amber eyes, Queen Azshara and Illidan Stormrage.

He quickly got to work on removing two of it's fangs as a proof of subjugation and skinning its valuable fur. He pulled seven arrows from different parts they were lodged in. Some of it were lodged too deeply he had to carve it out.

He inspected the arrowheads which were still dripping with blood and poison, small runes etched on it. Four of it was still reusable but the others were broken so thoroughly he'd have to reaffix them on new arrows.

At least the arrowheads were not damaged, it was hard getting ahold of such high quality arrowheads without the proper connections. Dwarven made and forged from miniscule amounts of adamantium mixed with it.

"Tsk. What a waste." the boy said.

Fatigue could be seen on his face, darkened eyelashes under bloodshot eyes. Even then, his senses were sharp as he surveyed the surroundings while doing his work.

"Would have to make do with just the bounty and the fur." He whispered to himself. The bounty posted for the magic creature was a hundred silver pieces, adding what he could get from selling the fur he would be able to scrap a nice sum of 125 silver pieces.

More if he could get a good buyer on the fur.

The boy clicked his tongue once more as he left with light steps back to town, the sun already setting on the horizon. The meat would have tasted great if only it wasn't poisoned. A shame really, it was only with the poison that he was able to hunt the beast down. With his small physique and weak frame, it would have taken much more to kill it without access to his more esoteric abilities.

His ability to _smell_ magic had also come in handy enabling him to keep track of the beast before he shot it with a magic disrupting arrow. Without the invisibility and it's cunning useless against its hunter, it became nothing but a large target.

His elfin eyes had enabled him to keep track of it as he hunted it under the light of the moon. It took him seven hours to finally kill the beast. He even lost arrows along the way because of how many times the beast instinctually it was being shot. It was fast even with its large frame.

He smiled lightly as he thought about what he could get with the gold for the children at the orphanage. Now if only he could get a warm meal, a bath and a good night of sleep.

* * *

**-III-**

Anadriel was not having a good day. When she woke up this morning she discovered that she had almost overslept forgoing breakfast to make it to work on time. Then she had to deal with more than usual amount of stupid pig headed idiots, pompous magicians _and _a specially disgusting adventurer who she almost socked when he tried to touch her ass.

She could admit with no small amount of pride that she looked beautiful even among the elves who most humanoid races considered as fair. Her long honey colored hair reaching the small of her back was tied in a ponytail accentuating her slim waist and buxom figure.

She wore a light blue blouse that did little to contain her rather generous breasts. A dark green cloth covered her waist until her knees. Her emerald green eyes glaring in ill concealed annoyance.

She had the traditional high elven beauty look with sharp features and a thin look on her face.

"Ah come on now Ana, how about a date tonight. I know you want a piece of this handsome me. Stop playing hard to get, it doesn't fit you." An adventurer said.

She was usually able to deal with this type of idiots except with a hungry stomach along with the line behind said adventurer getting longer as he posed to show of his muscles and his stinking breath as he tried to draw closer nearly made her snap. Her face darkening, her eyebrows twitching and her fist clenched into fists it was leaving marks on her palm.

She nearly snapped.

Luckily or unluckily for said adventurer, someone tapped Anadriel on the shoulder. Said person was her senior and coworker, Mel'narea Firemane. A receptionist who had been working there prior to her.

"Ana, go to guest room three. One of yours showed up with a bounty for the mutated Asuran bear posted about five days ago. Let me handle this." another guild receptionist said.

She released a small sigh as she turned towards her friend and coworker. She nodded lightly and spoke to the egoistic meatbag still spouting cringe worthy pickup lines.

"I'm sorry Mr. but it seems I'm needed to deal with some _important_ matters." She stated evenly.

"Hey, I'm still talking here!"

She turned to leave but the adventurer tried to grab. A delicate female hand held the adventurer's arm so tightly one could hear his bones creaking when he tried to grab her.

"I'm sorry Mr. Adventurer but disruption of guild operations is a serious offense you know?" Mel'narea said in a sickly sweet voice.

"Ack- let go you bitc- aaaaaahh! Hey! Stop! Please stop! My arm! My arm will break! Ah! It's burning!" The adventurer cried out in panic and pain.

Anadriel quickened her steps to get away from the commotion. She almost regretted not seeing what happened to the man. He would likely get thrown out, this would be the man's second time trying to harass her. A third time and he could get his adventurer license revoked forcing him to leave the city.

Once his license was revoked he would no longer be able to take adventuring jobs from the city leaving him with no job. He could probably try to apply for another license at another city but by that time. They would have his name blacklisted on the adventurer guild's network with multiple license revocation from three cities due to previous offenses.

The adventurer's guild kept a close information network. That adventurer had had his license revoked at twice at two other cities before he came to register here.

Mel'narea was previously an adventurer before she retired and applied as a receptionist at the guild. She was usually also the one who dealt with rowdy adventurers.

With how rowdy adventurers were and how aggresive they would be at times, the guild also hired retired adventurers who were strong enough to deter such attitude against the Guild.

The thing was, she was not a fighter and was only supposed to be handling book keeping matters and a select few special adventurers. One such adventurer was a Gold ranked adventurer who was given a title of 'Cursed Amber-eyed Hunter'.

Adventurers had come up with worse names than that.

Adventurers were given rank designation to distinguish their ability to take a job. It was a way to both limit fatalities and to have the right people for the right job. Before such things were implemented, newbies who were in over their heads would attempt to get a difficult job with high pay thinking themselves invincible only to return with dead fish eyes, visible mutilation and mental trauma. Often times no one even returned.

The lowest rank was Bronze, followed by Silver, then Gold and, finally, Mithril, the highest rank. The Adventurer Guilds Network was also planning to add another by the end of the year to further distinguish adventurer abilities. It would be named Adamantium, a rank above Mithril.

This particular adventurer that she had to take care of had the potential to get to Mithril rank, the only thing holding him back was not ability but rather the number of jobs he had to undertake to rank up. They needed proofs of his abilities.

The higher the rank, the greater the privileges an adventurer had. That was the incentive for reaching higher ranks.

One such privilege of a mithril rank adventurer was the designation of personal receptionists. A city had to do well to protect the interests of their higher rank adventurers because they were akin to Elite guards, often times called upon to resolve difficult crisis.

With the grim news of something stirring on the continent of Northrend, the City of Silvermoon was strengthening its vigilance. Even the adventurer's previously strict ranking prerequisites were loosened in favor of finding more talented adventurers, warriors for Quel'thalas.

This was specially the case with their recent loses in the Second War.

"May I come in, Kael?" Anadriel politely asked.

"Yes please."

The small cloaked form of a person who could be mistaken for a child was sitting on the room as she entered. Well he was technically still a child according to their races' standards. He claimed he was at the age of 24 which was plausible. You never could tell with mixed blooded elves.

A high elf at the same age would have the same appearance but with less mature mental faculties. Elves in general matured slower than most races, the more pure blooded they were the truer it was. A high elf was considered an adult at the age of 110 years old.

"Welcome back Kael, how was your hunt?" Anadriel asked.

"It went well, luckily, I was able to kill the beasts before it could do more damage. I think it was what forced the Horned Wolves out of the forest from more than a month ago." The boy said.

"Beasts?" Anadriel question.

"Yes, there were two of them. The beast had a mate and it was pregnant, I had to put both of them down. I was also able to find scars of previous battles on both beasts. Something else are pushing this monsters toward civilization." The boy explained.

Anadriel stared at the boy fascinated with his amber colored eyes that lay half-hidden within the shadowed hood. Not that she hadn't seen his face. It was just that the his eyes just looked so much more interesting this way.

It was the only feature that she could see with a cloth covering the rest of his face.

Amber eyes were considered a sign of great talent or magical capability by the Night Elves, and a child with such eyes in High Elven society would be ostracized. With the racial rift between the two races, even with time healing the wounds they would still never truly reconcile.

"A-ahem, yes. Then let me ask the guildmaster to increase the bounty. Do you have the proof of subjugation?" Anadriel tried hard not to appear distracted.

She had always been curious in about Kael'drin. According to the scrolls on him, he had appeared about two years ago and registered as an adventurer. That was coincidentally the time she started working here as a receptionist.

He was tested by an examiner and was deemed fit as an adventurer despite his small stature claiming to be a mixed blooded elf which would answer the question of why he was more mature than he looked.

But that did not answer why he was so skilled with both the blade and bow. The boy did not provide further information on it. The guild was not one to be picky about backgrounds anyway.

What piqued her interests more than his abilities was his appearance. His face resembled someone familiar, she couldn't place where she had seen it. But the strong sense of nostalgia whenever she looked at him remained.

Still, a gem was a gem. Nothing else mattered as long as the boy had skills and could understand orders.

Kael'drin brought out two pairs of dagger-like fangs from his pack. She carefully inspected both and confirmed the small traces of magic emanating from them confirming it was from the beasts.

"By the way, how was your day? You seem more out of it than usual." The boy asked.

"Ah, y-yeah. I'd been having a bad day. A human adventurer has been harassing me earlier. Mel'narea helped me out before it could get worse." She could see the boy's eyes narrowing at her words. "You don't have to worry about it, he might even get his adventurer's license revoke with how he' acting."

"Well, if you say so." The boy assented.

"Thanks for worrying anyway. Do you have anything else for me for today?" She asked in an attempt to divert the topic.

"Uh yeah, when I was at the village. I heard some adventurers who came from the south about some trolls raiding villages. I just wanted to warn the guild about this if they could find more of the raiding parties going north. It would be a disaster if they were able to slip through the kingdom's borders." The boy added.

"I'll do that. That reminds me, someone from the Windrunner family has been asking for information about you. As per guild protocols I'm asking if you would allow some of your private information to be used as public records. Nothing harmful, just your name, race and your accomplishments." Anadriel explained.

She could hear Kael'drin grumbling under his breath about troublesome nobles. Her lips quirked up in amusement. The Windrunner family was one of the closest thing the High Elves had for nobles.

The Windrunner House had produced distinguished warriors for generations. They approached Kael'drin with offer to teach one their own assured that he would accept. Their offer was generous and the conditions fair.

She was sure the Guildmaster had something to with this.

But he refused the offer saying he did not want to teach a _brat_, his exact words, not even looking at himself. It had been amusing as he glared down at the elf from atop a table wanting to appear taller than he was when the elven messenger looked down at him, both figuratively and physically.

She had teased him about that for a week.

"I'll go talk to them and see if they're causing you trouble, but yes, you can do that. It's not like they can find anything else from those records." The boy said.

"Thanks, that would get them out of my hair. They've been pestering the guild master for the last few days and he just had to _kindly_ delegate the work to me. I can't really say no if its a high ranking noble asking." She huffed in annoyance.

Suddenly, a loud growl sounded out from somewhere. She could see Kael tensing as he grabbed a dagger from within he's cloak, his eyes darting around the room.

Anadriel could feel her checks reddening in shame.

After a few seconds of silence, the boy sighed and spoke up.

"Want to go with me for lunch? I'm not edible you know." He said as he slowly inched away from her.

She could feel her face heating up as she glared at him. Their was the noticeable trace of a smirk on his lips. She was so going to make him _pay _for that remark, literally.

* * *

**-IV**-

Kael'drin, previously known by the name of Emiya Shirou a.k.a. an ex-Counter Guardian, was chatting with the beautiful guild receptionist while having lunch at one of the few high class inns in the area.

He was chewing slowly while analyzing the taste of the food. He could say that it was not a waste of money as he tasted each dish they were served. Now, if only he could only identify the exquisite bittersweet ingredient that was used to marinate this meat.

He could probably find a substitute for it if he just looked hard enough.

A smile played on his lips as he kept an ear to his friend who was telling him about her bad day. Her expression loosening a little as she was out of the guild and away from her work.

He ate happily as he thought of ways to further improve the dish. The generously given(stolen) secret recipe was already being written down somewhere in his mind. Some of the recipes were new.

Every month this inn would come up with another recipe from recipes from who knows where, surprising even him. He had once tried to offer his services as a cook but was denied because he was a midget according to the tavern owner.

If only he was able to, he could have hypnotized the owner just to get a glimpse of the cookbook they had. But alas, Kael had never been a good magus and he never would be.

He looked up when he felt a pair of eyes staring down at him. Said eyes were from Anadriel who spoke up as she continued to stare without remorse.

"What?" Kael asked.

"You look like an child trying to act like an adult whenever you have that face. Can you honestly tell me how old you are, Kael?" Anadriel said.

"It's rude to ask a person's age you know." Kael said in a joking tone.

"Hehe, sure but that excuse only works for women." She giggled as he tried hard not to pout, his childish impulses taking over.

"I'm 24 years old." Kael admitted.

"That's what you claim your age is. Not your true age." Anadriel said.

"And how would you know that?" Kael asked.

"It's called a woman's intuition, Kael." She stuck a tongue out as she caught him on his lie. Not that it mattered. He was probably far far older than her mentally.

"Playing spy for the guild master?" Kael said as he finished the last of his meal.

"Now you're just trying to avoid the topic." Anadriel accused.

"Teehee?" He tried to act cute only for it to fail miserably with his monotone voice. He could feel something die inside of him as Anadriel stared at him with a deadpan look.

"That's not cute at all," Anadriel said, " but if you really don't want to tell me fine. But don't come complaining to me if I can only get bronze rank quests for the rest of the month."

"Hey, that's blatant abuse of authority." Kael protested.

Anadriel continued to stare at him impassively without replying.

"Fine, "Kael sighed in resignation, "I'm eighteen years old. Happy now?"

"Hehe, of course I am. Buuut I still think you're not telling me the truth. I've been your friend for two years now, can you trust me a little?" He could she was a bit hurt.

"No, you've been my personal receptionist for the last two years. How'd you know I consider you a friend?" Kael drawled out.

"Don't lie to me Kael. I know you love me."She waggled her eyebrows at him teasingly like the previous emotion was a lie.

"Ha-ha-ha." He spoke as monotonously as possible pronouncing each word with extreme sarcasm. That sent Anadriel into another fit of giggles.

He smiled internally to himself, at least she'd forget about the bad day she had. She was one of the very few friends he had after all, even if he did tell the truth...

"Oh, you're smiling again." She covered her mouth as she giggled.

"I am not." His lips stretch into a thin line as he denied it.

The happy mood was interrupted when a group of men rudely barged in on them. A high elf approached Ana with his two guards staying back a little. He rudely sat beside Anadriel.

"My my, lovely lady. Would you like to have lunch with me? We can even go have some fun after it? I promise I'll take good care of you." He spoke lecherously as he tried to reach an around her shoulders.

"Please let go of me. I've already had lunch, so no thank you. And I'm speaking with someone" Anadriel's frosty voice echoed as her face darkened forcing the man to back off a little.

The man looked towards him in contemp.

"Hmm it's just child." The arrogant asshole said as he stared at Kael. "Oh and would you look at that, a disgusting Night Elf spawn. Scram you mongrel." He said the words Night Elf the same way he would have said _shit_.

He would have mistaken the guy as the second coming of Gilgamesh if not for one thing. He stared at the man letting out a heavy killing intent, an ability that he learned from one of his iterations. The illusion of a three headed Deva with three pairs of arms wielding weapons appeared behind him.

"**Leave.**"

The man was pathetically weak.

He tripped over himself as he stumbled backwards, scuttling on all fours on the ground while staring at him eyes wide with horror. He looked down at his wet pants and tried to cover it as he ordered as his goons to help him up.

Kael sighed in relief. He didn't need to stand up. He could already see the owner of the establishment walking over with his own people to disrupt the fight.

"Sir, would you please leave. You are disturbing our costumers." The tavern owner demanded.

"Do you know who I am! I am the son of the Royal Elven Guard Captain! You dare order me!" The high elf proclaimed as he tried to glare at Kael with a pale face, spittle flying out.

"Oh, so you are a son of Captain Theramore? Splendid, I'll have a talk with your father about your behavior tomorrow. But I need you to leave now, ya see? Cause you're disrupting the business."

The inn owner towered over the high elf with his massive frame and bulging muscled, his hands twitching to strangle the little twerp.

The high elf tried to say something but he was manhandle by the inns' staff together with his goons.

"I'll remember this boy!" The man shouted before he was dragged out.

"Annoying privileged scum." The inn owner spat as he turned towards them. "I should have known. Are you magnet for trouble or something little Ana." The tavern owner spotted Kael sitting with her. "And who's this, care to introduce me to your boyfriend? Didn't know you liked em young."

The tavern owner spoke in a friendlier tone as he teased his friend.

"Please stop old man Nesarion. That was already the second time today." Ana huffed in annoyance. "Kael this is old man Nesarion Tidebreaker, _former _Captain of the Royal Elven Guard. Old man this is Kael'drin a Gold ranked adventurer."

"Hello, you can call me Kael or Kael'drin whatever is fine. Nice to meet you again _old man_ Nesa."

Anadriel laughed in approval at his introduction.

"So you already know him?" Ana asked.

"I tried to apply as a cook here. He threw me out the next second." Kael said.

"Pffft- hahahaha! I'd love to has seen that!" She laughed.

"By the Light, not another one! I already get that enough of that from little Ana here."The man clutched his heart dramatically, ignoring his earlier words. "Be a good boy and call me Uncle Nesa, maybe then I'll consider if you're good enough for little Ana." They shared a laugh at the man's antics.

"Shut up _old man_ Nesa."

"I don't even look that old yet, do I?"

To be honest he didn't look that old for an elf. Nesarion had square jaws covered with white stubble and his shoulder length white hair a mess. But he did look like a bum. A strange cross between a disciplined military officer and homeless mercenary. Still a bum.

"Of course you do!" Ana broke down laughing again. "I swear you're more fun to tease than Kael with how bland he is. Anyway who was than jerk earlier?"

"Nah, just Theramore's kid." Nesarion said in annoyance.

"He's a good captain and soldier. Can't see how his son grew up like that. Forget about em. I'll take care of it tomorrow. "Nesarion continued.

"Treat your date well, boy. I still got something to do. Say hi to Mel'narea for me little Ana." Nesarion said as he waved goodbye.

"Geez, just ask her out already, old man." Ana replied before he could leave, his footsteps quickened after hearing that.

"Tch what a coward. "She clicked her tongue before speaking to him. "Are you going anywhere tomorrow, Kael?"

"No, why?" He looked at her suspiciously.

"Perfect. I'll be coming over at the orphanage then. So with nothing to do ,you'll be cooking right?" A small trail of drool was flowing down her mouth.

"Couldn't you make your intentions any clearer?" He replied in smug satisfaction at one his food's fan(victim). Most of the kids at the orphanage did love his cooking.

"Yeah yeah. Say, Kael, will you marry me?" She said in a voice so serious he would have hesitated but the glimmer of amusement he could see on her face gave it away.

"Of course Ana, you're the only woman for me." He replied back in the same serious tone. Anadriel looked at him with shock on her face and her cheeks starting to redden.

"Gotcha." He said with a smirk.

The comprehension on her face as she looked back at him was venomous.

"You're so mean, Kael. You shouldn't play with a woman's heart like that. Where have I gone wrong in raising you?" She advanced on him and pinched his cheeks. Hard.

"You gen't raise me woman, now yet go before I get sherioush?(You didn't raise me woman, not let go before I get serious." She let go after fierce struggle that almost left him teary eyed.

He had a hard time trying to control his emotions and reactions.

The childish impulse to cry came with the stinging pain. He had gone though far far worse than this. It was just that his body's physiological reaction was different from his mental reaction.

He was somehow dreading the day he would become a teenager. Oh by the Root, the hormones! After he had regained his memories, his body had seemingly sped up its growth matching that of a human.

It had not arose suspicion but rather confusion. Even he did not have an answer for it. The only thing he could think of was that his soul was empowering the growth of his body. He felt his soul was different from that of a normal person after all. When he regained his memories, it was like a glass vessel within him broke. Or more like chains that were suppose to hold down both his memories and the power he had were released.

Like someone had made it that way.

Not that he had anyway to know. He wasn't sure and all of it was pure conjecture.

He just hoped that his estimation of his growth was right. He wouldn't get stuck as a teenager for half a century would he? Oh how he hoped that was not the case.

* * *

**-V-**

Kael'drin walked through the sprawling metropolis of Silvermoon City towards the seedier parts of town. The white immaculate works of architectural beauties slowly changing to old wooden houses.

At least it didn't smell that badly. This might have been the cleanest slum area he had ever seen. Even a fantasy esque world like this had its dark sides.

He had been able to reclaim his memories about four years.

Waking up one night with memories that he shouldn't have… it took him about six months before he could accept it all. Though he couldn't remember everything he could still remember a lot of the most important memories.

In his previous life he had been an orphan raised by a Magus. He was saved from a fire that was caused by the corrupted Holy Grail. Being the naive fool that he was, he had taken his adopted father's ideals as his own. To save people. That was just one of the many mistakes that made up Emiya Shirou's life. The greatest mistake was when he accepted Alaya's offer to save a thousand lives from a nuclear meltdown in exchange for serving as a Counter Guardian on his death.

He had been so stupid. As long as he could save people, he had been happy with it. That was, until the nightmare started. He was called upon disasters, one after another, caused by man or otherwise. Disasters that could endanger the advancement and survival of humanity. Most were caused by man.

That was why he became a bloody reaper, the Beast of Alaya.

Blood rusted his blades so much that even the once beautiful dawn of his reality marble changed to show red colored sky and the setting sun.

Well, he was done with it. By some miracle, he was reincarnated into this world. He was no longer Alaya's hunting dog. He was free!

He would relish this freedom and live a long peaceful life, he was sure it would be longer because according to what he learned of an elf's lifespan could last hundreds of years.

He had even accepted the name that he was given. He had thrown away the name Emiya Shirou when he had abandoned his ideals. That was another part of his past that he was eager to put behind.

His name was Kael'drin Hopebringer, and he would enjoy this life! He felt himself cringe every time he said his last name. That was the name his biological parents gave him, might as well take it to honor their memory. He did not remember his father's face and could only vaguely remember his mother's. That was the best thing he could do to the people who brought him to this world.

His aim of living a peaceful life was not detered even as he learned more about the wars, Demon Gods and world ending creatures that existed in this world. Perfect. He'd stay as far away from those as possible.

He had not been surprised when he learned that he was an orphan. According to the gossip he heard from the caretakers, his parents died in the Second War. They were both soldiers. His father followed the legendary Alleria Windrunner when she led the Elven expeditionary army into Draenor and his mother who died while helping defend the village they had lived at during an orc raid.

He was not so sure if that was true.

He had expected as much with his luck. It was also rumored that his mother was, a pure blooded Night Elf who fell in love with his father. Thus resulting in him being a mixed blood elf.

Night elves were silently tolerated, mixed bloods were despised and loathed. That didn't stop him from helping out at the orphanage he grew up in.

Even if he denied it, Emiya Shirou would always want to help people. When he saw the conditions at the orphanage, he set out to improve it.

He helped out on doing the chores at the same time started training his body. The change in his character was so drastic that the caretakers were confused but they got over it. Even before he acquired his previous life's memories, Kael had been always been a kind helpful boy.

Though the orphanage was being supported by the city, it was just not enough. With the number of casualties from the war, numerous children were orphaned. Even with some children being taken in by concerned citizens and relatives, there were still too many of them.

At the age of sixteen years old, when he still looked like a seven year old human child he applied as adventurer. He was surprised when all they required of him was fighting ability.

According to his examiner. He may have human blood in him that would explain his odd appearance and mature demeanor. Humans matured far faster than elves, considering human were considered adults at the age of fifteen.

The examiner threatened to ban him from applying as an adventurer for the next eighty years if did not show any ability though. The thing was, he might have overdone it.

He did not have eighty years to wait and he didn't want to.

If Kael waited for eighty more years, that would put his age at 120 years old which was considered as the age of an adult elf.

So he just went with it when they asked if one of his parents was a half-elf.

He had cheated a little on the exam by using reinforcement magecraft. That was the only one of the two spells that he was able to perform from his three major thaumaturgic abilities. He was not able to perform tracing, the bread and butter of his fighting style.

Something about himself was different. He couldn't even tell what it was. He was no genius at magecraft. To perform further analysis required magical ingredients that he did not have and doubted he could find in this world. He was not that knowledgeable enough to find and use any substitute materials.

The only spells he knew the most were reinforcement, structural grasp and tracing.

The ability to improve an object's concept.

The ability to understand the structure and design of an object.

Finally, the ability to create physical copies of an object. His origin and element causing him to overspecialize in creating swords in particular and any bladed weapons.

With the body that he had though, he was surprised when he discovered that he could do _more _with it. His body's potential far exceeded all that he previously had even at his peak as a human. He did not have any magic circuits but what he did have was something akin to a magic core.

He was able to use his abilities by channeling this strange energy that he could tell was not pure prana.

The guild assigned him directly as a Silver ranked adventurer skipping Bronze and he was just recently promoted to Gold. According to Anadriel, if he kept it up for the next five years he would be promoted to Mithril.

Coria Dawndreamer ,the manager of the orphanage had not been happy with him though. She considered herself a mother to all the children at the orphanage. Coria was an elf who had taken it as her personal mission to chastise and scold the misbehaving children of the world.

Kael always wanted to ask how could someone like her be in that position. He remembered the cold look that he had been subjected to for months on end. That had contrasted with how she usually was, a bright almost child-like character who cared for the orphans.

She almost stormed the Adventurer's Guild when she learned he registered. Thank whatever Gods were out there that they were able to convince her to calm down. He had been bound in overgrown magic plants and was made to promise to never do anything dangerous or stupid without consent again.

When there was a grown woman bawling her eyes out trying to make sure he didn't do anything stupid, what was a man to do? He relented.

She even forced him to promise it on a magic oath not unlike a geass. It compulsed him to stop before doing anything dangerous. Well, anything he _considered _dangerous based on his own skills. Coria didn't need to know that.

He was brought out of his thoughts when he heard a shout. Ahead of him was the two-story orphanage building surrounded by a low wooden fence.

"Kael! It's Kael! He's home!" A child smaller than he was excitedly shouted his name calling the attention of the people nearby.

He grimaced then sighed in resignation. He had been hoping to sneak in silently.

Now time to face the music. He tensed himself and braced for the impact as a horde of mini monstrosities charged at him while shouting his name.

* * *

-**VI-**

Kael rubbed his joints to somehow ease the pain. The little monsters had tried to rip apart as they pulled him from all directions each wanting to have him tell them stories of his adventure outside. It was not his fault the children were starved for affection and attention or maybe entertainment.

He was currently within the confines of Coria's room as they sat opposite each other.

She was formerly a magician who was a member of the Kirin Tor, the neutral most powerful group of mages on Azeroth.

She had joined the war effort to push back the Orc during the previous war. Aside from that he knew nothing else about why she was here. What motivation did she have to take care of the orphanage? She could have just returned to the Kirin Tor, with any merits she may have attained during the war it was sure to elevate her status. So why?

The orange light of the setting sun coming from the window further emphasized how motherly Coria looked. She had the emerald green eyes that was common among high elves, blue being the other one. Her long wavy brown her let loose behind her. She didn't have the sharp look of the elves though, her face was more rounded but that did nothing to diminish her beauty as most elves had.

Kael felt his joints crack as he stretch them.

"Are you alright Kael'drin?" Coria asked as she stared at him.

"Root be damned brats..." He silently cursed.

"What was that?" Her voice dropping dangerously low.

"Nothing, I said you look as beautiful as always." He smoothly complimented as he sat straighter on the chair.

"Fufufu, compliments will get you nowhere with me brat." She said but couldn't help smiling.

"So how are the children? Are you having problems? Is there anything you need?" He asked as to divert her attention.

"Don't worry about us Kael'drin. I worry more about you with how much work you're doing for us." She sighed softly as she gave him a gentle look.

He grimaced internally. He did not mean to be that direct in offering his assistance. He really blamed his age for this. He was not this honest nor was he this polite to anyone. The only time he remembered being like this was when he was far too young to know what it meant to save people.

"So what did you want to talk about?" He spoke up again trying not to fidget on his chair.

"Have you considered the Windrunner family's offer?" She asked while bringing out a parchment and placing it on the table. "I worry about you every time you go on a job outside the city. I know you've been scouting down south. I also know that you took a job to kill a magic beast. Both of those were gold ranked quests Kael'drin."

He tried not look guilty as he heard the palpable worry from her.

"But those were easy quest..." He whispered as he forced himself no to look away in guilt.

"Kael'drin... please accept the Windrunner family's offer. I know this is selfish of me trying to force you on a choice you don't want to take. But I won't be able to take it if you...*sniff sniff*"

He could see the tears welling in her eyes at the unspoken words that she couldn't dare to say.

_If you die._

"Uwaaaaahhhh! Don't weave! What if you got hurt!?" Snot was dripping down her nose as she cried without restraint. She leapt across the table and grabbed him in a death gripping hug. He could feel the tears and snot falling on his head. He awkwardly tried to pat on the back.

He had once come home bearing grievous wound after accepting a quest to kill a griffin. What the villagers conveniently forgot to mention in order to lower the cost they had to pay to issue the quest was that it was not a single griffin. It was a damned flock of them. The usual flock of griffins consisted of more than six members. This flock was consisted of fifteen!

After finishing the quest, he did not trust the villagers enough to treat his wounds properly. He returned directly to Silvermoon with his wounds worsening as he had to fight off beast that were attracted by a bloody and wounded prey.

With generous application of reinforcement and through pure sheer willpower, he made it back within sight of the city gates before collapsing. He later woke up in a bed at the orphanage, his body wrapped in excessive amount of bandages.

Some time after, he reported to the guild that it was a pack consisting of four griffins that were there. He did not hate the village as seeing that they already were piss poor, it wasn't right to demand more gold from them but it was also not right to just roll over for them. So he went with a compromise, he talked with the guild master to record the quest same as it was but they should keep note of this in case this happens again.

It was to prevent a repeat of the incident. If it was anyone else but him had taken the job, they could have died. A few days later, representatives of the village arrived to ask for his forgiveness and to thank him for what he did. They offered him everything they had, their life as slaves. He refused, from what he could see the representatives were what they might have considered as the strongest and the most beautiful among them.

They needed help to rebuild their village from the griffin attacks. They were needed more than ever. That was what he said.

That was the wrong answer, apparently. As they instead bowed down to him and promised to build a monument in his honor almost worshiping him as a benevolent and merciful god.

If he ever visited that village again, he swore by the Root he would destroy that monument. He would smash it with a damned hammer if he needed to.

He resigned himself to a decision. Besides, he did not want repeat the mistakes he made in the past. He left those important to him to pursue a foolish dream. His hardened heart had slowly crumbled.

"I'll probably regret this. No. I know I'll regret this." He quietly muttered.

He tiredly continued to run a hand on Coria's back to soothe her.

Though she didn't talk about it, Coria probably had trauma of losing someone important to her. The Second War killed all the members of her family. Dense as he was, he knew how the caretakers looked at her with pity.

Unfortunately for him, it seemed that the children was what she used to ease the lose of her family. Coria was probably suffering from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. She was suffering a trauma from what she witnessed during the war.

From what Kael had heard, thousands of innocents had died during the war.

The Horde was able to push deep into Elven territory as far the heart of the Kingdom of Quel'thalas, into the Eversong Forest which was located just within the border of Silvermoon City.

He felt Coria's sobs growing quiet as she slowly leaned into him. It took him about half an hour to look up, only to see her asleep. He sighed in exasperation. How could she someone as childish as her manage to maintain this rowdy orphanage. He gently shifted Coria to his back before proceeding to place her on the bed.

She was probably tired and it was likely that she hadn't slept last night. Again. This was not the first time he saw her forgoing sleep. He felt guilt and shame knowing the person causing most her worries was him.

He closed his eyes as he made a choice. Though he would be able to help less people he would-

He paused.

He took the blanket and placed it over Coria.

He'd noticed it a few times but his decisions were instinctively weighed on how many people he could help. He grimaced. He didn't know if it was his age that was causing this or something else but he needed to put a stop to this.

He needed to put the people that he treasured as Kael'drin Hopebringer above the twisted needs of Emiya Shirou to save people, and boy was that not easy. He looked back one more time before silently closing the door as he snuck out of the room.

How could someone with a distorted soul, change? He contemplated as he thought of the options he had. He could look through the magic available to this world. He could ask around to inquire about magic or even buy books if he could afford it. If only he had a way to regain his tracing skill, it would make that endeavor far safer.

Now he really wished he had those magical ingredients.

* * *

-**VII-**

Kael meticulously washed the dirt from the freshly harvested herbs and vegetable. He had woke up early this morning for his routine exercise and to harvests somethings that he would need for the recipes that he had in mind.

He steadily piled the vegetables after drying his hands on a cloth. His mechanically grabbed the chopping board and knife while he was lost in thought.

'We still have a lot of oil from what I melted off the quillboar fat from last time. Deep fried crispy cockatrice and a healthy mix of fresh vegetables as salad. Yes, that will do.'

He prepared the ingredients rummaging through the pantry. One thing he made sure of was that they always had a full pantry. That was to ensure they never lacked in food.

'They're low on flour and some spices, let me add that to my shopping list later.'

He hummed a tune as he felt his stress melting.

His hands were expertly chopping the herbs before placing them on the pot. Grabbing a spoon, he scooped a bit of the soup with his customized wooden tasting spoon.

'Needs a bit of salt and oil is heated up.'

He added a pinch an turned around to check the marinated meat he prepared last night.

He could see a child's head peeking out from the kitchen door from the corner of his eyes. Then another head popped out. Then another, before long the doorway was full of heads staring at him as he cooked.

After that one incident where they tried to invade his holy sanctuary with dirt and grime all over them, he threatened to never cook again if they didn't learn to wash themselves before going to the kitchen.

That had worked far more effectively than he hoped. Now the children were far more willing to take a bath and clean themselves without being told. They also never entered the kitchen when he was cooking.

He recognized one of the head peeking from the doorway.

"What are you doing there Coria?"

"Oh, they were doing something interesting so I followed suit?" She tilted her head cutely.

He stare at them. They stared back. Might as well have them do something.

"Why don't you help set the table? I'm nearly done and can you call the caretakers?" Kael suggested.

The children eagerly provided help to make the mealtime come even just a little bit sooner. He smiled at their cheerfulness and enthusiasm. His arm whipped to the right to slap a naughty and grubby hand that was trying to pilfer from the pile of brown crispy fried meat.

"Go wash your hands you thief." Kael scolded.

"Aw, come on just one. Please." Coria looked at him with teary pleading eyes but he was not to be detered.

"Wash or no food for you." He said with steel in his voice.

"Okay!" He watched as the criminal fled with haste. She would be back to plunder of that he had no doubt.

Not a moment later, she was back trying to steal again. His hand swiftly grabbed ladle to bonk her on the head.

"Why?! I already washed my hand." Coria complained. "Besides I have the right to taste it first."

"Did you wash your left hand? No, and criminals have no rights. Go wash properly before you regret it." Kael warned.

"Ohhhh...so mean." Coria grumbled as she rubbed her swelling head.

Once he was finished with the last dish and had it sent to the dining room, he made his way to front door of the orphanage and opened it.

In front of him was Anadriel who was about to knock with a fist raised.

"You're just in time for breakfast."

"Really, I was hoping to surprise you. How do you always know I'm here?" He opened the door to let her in. "Here are some fruits market, I also got you some of the spices you were asking about last time."

He took the bag that was handed to him before leading the way. They entered the lively atmosphere of the dining room with some of the children already eating.

"Go join them, let me just go place this in the kitchen." He indicated at the bag he was holding.

"Welcome Anadriel."

"Thanks Coria."

"Yay. Let's eat."

"Children, be careful with your food."

"I want that brown thingy!"

"Hey! You're eating too fast."

"...Ahhhnn..sooo good."

"Here have some of the soup, its delicious."

"This is mine!"

"Coria please stop being a brat and share."

The cacophony of voices made Kael smile

A moment later Kael was seating among them eating while watching the happiness oozing as they ate his food. He always enjoyed making food for people.

"They're lively as always." Anadriel said from beside him.

"Yes, they are." He replied.

After the meal, with the dishes washed with the help from the adults. Kael was preparing some clothes for a visit. It would not do to have his usual get up on a formal setting.

He looked through his admittedly limited wardrobe and chose one of the newer clothes he had. He heard a knock at the door, with out turning he spoke up as he began changing his clothes.

"Come in."

"Hello- you're changing you're clothes."

"Thanks for stating the obvious, Ana." He replied oozing with sarcasm.

"So... are you going to the Windrunner Spire today?" Anadriel asked.

"I might as well accept the offer. Besides I can try to tolerate teaching a brat if they're talented enough." Kael said while trying on a shirt.

"I thought you were going there to state your refusal." Anadriel said.

"I had a change of mind." Kael admitted.

"Oh, do tell. I know you Kael. You don't simply 'change your mind'." Anadriel said.

Kael had a conflicted expression on his face before finally replying.

"Coria convinced me. That's all."

"If there was anyone able to convince, I did bet it was her. So are you going to be out until lunch? You're still cooking for lunch right?" Anadriel asked.

"I cooked enough. Besides depending on what happens I might be home before that. Are you staying to teach the children today?" Kael questioned.

"Yes, it would be good to at least teach them basic sense and courtesy before they grow up like you. Silvermoon doesn't need another Kael so soon." Anadriel teased.

"Fuuu, yes yes milady. Whatever you say. Besides, there can only be one of me." He retorted after looking at his clothes. Simple, efficient and clean. He grabbed one of his lighter cloaks to cover himself followed by a black scarf.

He didn't want receiving looks while traversing the city.

Kael walk out of the room with Ana following after soon after closing the door. They reach the main door shortly.

"Take care Kael'drin. _Al diel shala_(Safe travels)." Anadriel said as she bid him goodbye.

"Don't worry I will be. _Shorel'aran_(Farewell)," Kael said.

After he was out of sight, he started sprinting and made leap towards the top of a house. His travel went unhindered as he activated one of the runes on his cloak that would diminish his presence and provide a bit of camouflage.

It had taken about an hour to reach his destination. He leapt down lightly from a tree and slowly walked towards the Windrunner home.

"Halt. State your business before I put an arrow through your skull intruder." He had already detected the guard perched on a high branch with his reinforced senses earlier.

He raised both hand and slowly took out a rolled parchment from within his cloak.

"I'm here on the invitation from Lady Windrunner." He said nothing further as he waited for the guard to lower his bow.

"Remove your cloak so that I may determine your identity." The man was already near him but his hands were still tensed.

He complied removing the hood and lowering his scarf that covering the lower part of his face. He could see the man sniff in disdain but kept it well enough to himself. He took the parchment and scanned through it seeing the Windrunner house crest on it.

"Follow me and keep close." He said while returning it to him. He rolled it back and secured it within his clothes. Best to have it with just in case he got lost. He was sensing an awful lot of presences just around the residence.

After what happened during the war with most of the members of their house dying during a raid, it seemed that they had committed some people to guard the area.

He was lead to a gate that was the only entrance in the area. Even from here he could see the towering spires that were built on elevated ground. It appeared to be a small fortress on its own now. They approached one of the spires.

The elf leading him spoke to another guard who was in front of the double doors of the tower before they were let through.

Another person, this time a woman led him towards what seemed to be a guest room. He sat on one of the chairs while observing the rest of the room.

It was luxurious enough to indicate they were nobility among the elves but was simple enough not to appear excessive. Pieces of art decorated the lobby from vases to weapons, mostly bows. Under his feet was a thick fur rug.

Several painting were on the wall, one of them seemed to be a painting of the family.

Huddled together were three elven girls with different hair color. One was blonde, another one with silver and the tallest girl with dark brown hair. Two adult were standing behind them with a child bundled in the woman's arms.

Further observation was cut short as he heard footsteps behind him. A woman with blond hair entered the room attired in a hybrid of light leather armor that also worked as a skirt reaching her thighs.

He also noted that she was lightly armed with two short swords on both side of wide hips. She had quite the figure if he could say so. Not being biased he could even say that her beauty rivaled that of Medusa as an Earth Goddess. A deadly battle hardened warrior.

"Are you the one name Kael'drin Hopebringer." She opened with the conversation as she made herself comfortable on the opposite side of table.

"Yes, that's me Lady Sylvannas." He resisted the urge to let out a sarcastic quip.

She observed him in silence before opening her mouth to speak again.

"You look quite young for a potentially Mithril ranked adventurer."

This was one of those moments he regretted doing too _well _on that adventurer exam. He had underestimated what he could do and overestimated his examiner. How was he to know that the elves of this world were different from his. He did not have a proper gauge of the abilities of a fully trained elven warrior so how was he to know.

"Ability does not equate to age, milady." He replied respectfully without sounding to arrogant.

"So it does if what's reported of your feats are true. So are you here to accept the job?" He could see the light glint of curiosity in her eyes which meant nothing to him but trouble.

"Unfortunately, yes." He slapped himself internally. He could already see her eyes narrowing down at him.

"You have confidence in your abilities then. Would you like to spar for me to confirm it?" She said with her voice raised.

"I hope your rank matches your ability, I wouldn't want to _accidentally _injure you after all. I had braggarts at my door pleading mercy after I tried to ascertain if they really were who they said they were." The woman continued.

He understood the implied threat.

Now felt like stabbing himself for that comment. She was not even hiding her hostility as she spoke. Her request was a demand, she was asking if he could provide enough of a fight befitting his rank or he would get injured.

Might as well get it over with.

"That would be fine with me, _milady_." He smiled at the woman.

"You can call me Sylvanas, I don't mind. I promise I wouldn't go too hard on you _boy_." She smiled back. A smile that promised pain to liars and arrogant pups.

"Then please lead the way _Lady Sylvanas_." He could see her eyebrows twitching ever so slightly.

* * *

-**VIII**-

The child stood opposite her holding on to two oversized blunted curved daggers which made them look like short swords in his hands. They agreed the spar would be with blades.

She could feel slight annoyance towards the child.

He was more mature than his age indicated and he had a way with words that irked her to no end. The short exchange she had with him indicated that he was arrogant beyond words.

She would have to show him that _age _did in fact equate to skill. From what she learned the child was barely a warrior for two years. She had not believed it at first when the guild master offered him as one of the candidates as a trainer. The boy had the gall to refuse it?

She would have to confirm his skills herself.

They both simultaneously entered a circle drawn on the field. She could see some of the guards spectating. The conditions they agreed upon was first blood or the first one to step out of the circle.

She stepped forward with her own practice blades at ready.

It was so sudden she did not know what happened. One second she was stepping forward to take up the center of the circle to disarm the child immediately, the next thing she knew she was on her back with dust scattering about.

Stunned.

What happened? How could she a veteran of the Second War be taken down so easily? She had a century of experience with battle far more than child. Much more than a mere whelp!

She lifter herself of the ground to see the child in front of her blades at ready. Maybe she underestimated her opponent _a little_.

"Does that satisfy you, Lady Sylvanas. "She could almost feel him smirking as she said those words.

She was not crass or lowly enough to not acknowledge his skill. But she also did not want to admit defeat.

"We agreed on _first blood_ or an if we are forced out of the circle. I'm not bleeding yet." It was childish of her she knew. But her pride could not take being defeated just like that.

"Very well then. "He replied as he took another stance.

She carefully observed him as he crouched low on ground. She was able to parry a strike that was targeted towards her gut. Her opponent was using his advantage in height to stick close to the ground, aiming to either target her heels or strike at her abdomen.

But she was barely keeping up with his speed, only her years of reflexes enabled her to parry each oncoming strike but she knew she had to take back the initiative.

She was being pushed back slowly. She never was as good with blades as she was with her bow but still...she was not specially good with dual wielding. But losing to a child? Preposterous.

Her pride would not be able to take. Worse was there were spectators. She did not want to appear weak in front of her men.

Before she could think of something, the boy disappeared in front of her again. She spun and tried to leap before the boy tripped her again but she was too slow. The boy swept his feet at her and leapt on top of her as she went down with both blades at her neck.

"I don't need to draw you blood do I, Lady Sylvanas?"

She could feel anger and shame reddening her face.

"Get off me. I accept defeat." The boy got off her before offering hand to help her up. She accepted it begrudgingly.

The boy, no man. She acknowledge with grudging respect. Any skilled warrior regardless of age was a man according to their family traditions. That was why she was already a warrior at the age of sixty, an age that could be considered her youth. She still could not believe the boy was that simple of a warrior.

He was fast. What he lacked for strength he made it up for in speed.

Even his skill was years beyond someone of his age should have any right to.

"I'll accept you as my brother's tutor. Furthermore, I want you as a sparring partner. I will double the wage stated on the agreement. Will you accept?" She could feel the boy hesitate and mutter the word troublesome. "Will you accept?" This time with more force.

She was accepting him as a tutor for younger brother not for her own selfish reason of course. She was not as immature to just accept him so that she could pay him back for this humiliation. No, she was the current Head of the House of Windrunner. She would not stoop that low.

"Okay, I'll take the job."

"We will be sending another draft of the agreement to the adventurer's guild for the duration of your employ. See you tomorrow Kael'drin Hopebringer." Sylvanas said.

She skulked with dignity and what remained of her pride back to the house. Her minds were already going through plans on how to counter the man's speed. Maybe she could take up to learning the sword? There were very few wielders of sword among the High elves.

No, next time she would honor him by wielding a bow. She had no doubt he would agree with the arrogant smirk plastered on his face. She could not wait for the next day.

* * *

-IX

He felt like bashing his head against a wall. He wished he could bash his head on several walls. He just couldn't hold his mouth without appearing sarcastic, could he?

Kael'drin shoulder's slumped in defeat. He's face was despondent as he trudged through the paved streets of Silvermoon while carrying a bag on his back. At least he remembered to go to marketplace.

He wasn't supposed to have done that. Moments before the spar with Sylvanas, he had felt the impulse to show her who was stronger. Dumb fucking move it was. His short lived satisfaction when he saw her defeated and angry face was replaced by horror.

'What have I fucking done!?'

It was not like him to act like that. He had to blame his body for this one. Again. Maybe it was a part of what remained of _Kael'drin_ before he took over. Could he really consider it as taking over? No, he just remembered his past as Counter Guardian EMIYA.

Maybe he was still integrating all of his memories from his pasts and his mental state was stuck between that of a child and an adult.

'But looking at the bright side, his income would be doubled. In exchange for getting entangled with nobles. At least he got the job if he could last long enough with Sylvanas shooting an arrow through him.'

"I'm screwed."

That summed up his situation pretty well.

The rest of the day was a blur as he thought of ways to apologize for popping her ego without sounding like an ass. He couldn't.

Now he was back in front of the same building he had been in yesterday, within the compounds of the Windrunner residence.

He stared at Sylvanas as she introduced his would be student. He looked young. He appeared to be as the same age as him, at least physically.

"Lirath, introduce yourself." Sylvanas urged the boy who leaning towards her with his head lowered.

"H-hello, my n-name is Lirath Windrunner."

Kael could hardly hear the boy's words even with his elfin ears.

"Nice to meet you Lirath. I am Kael'drin Hopebringer, a tutor that was hired by your family to teach the arts of battle. I hope we can get along well." He replied, his vaunted control prevented him from looking to the side where Sylvanas sat with arms crossed and her bust pushed up.

"Y-yes. Nice to meet y-you too. Let's get along well."

The boy was the complete opposite of her sister. Shy, polite and nice while her sister was arrogant, stubborn and... not nice. Were they really siblings? He could see the distinction between them. They had the same hair color with different eye color. Sylvanas had bright blue eyes while Lirath had dark green.

The boy still had a bit of baby fat on his face but they had the same face shape with pointed chin and sharp nose.

"Now Kael'drin, you promised we would have-"

"And you stated Lady Sylvanas that it would be after I teach your brother." He rudely cut her off. Shirou could feel the killing intent coming off her growing stronger. Well done Kael, you just shot yourself in the foot.

"Fine." She huffed.

Sweat flowed down his brows as he delayed his execution. Sylvanas left them to themselves but her eyes never left his form.

"By the Root, I think she's going to kill me." He unconsciously muttered.

"Eh, n-no she won't. E-elder sister is nice." Lirath stammered in defense of Sylvannas.

"Oh? Yes yes she won't. Now let's go to the courtyard." His voice was patronizing as he thought on ways to train the boy. "By the way, why didn't your sister teach you instead?"

"Uhm, s-sister says she doesn't know how t-to teach well a-and that she m-might hurt me instead. S-she also said that it w-was better t-that I learned from those went out o-on the field." Lirath said.

"Okay, the first thing we need to fix is your stuttering. Aside from that I think well get along just fine." Kael said.

"Really?" Lirath asked hopefully.

"Yes. I can even be your friend if you want me to." Kael said with a smile.

"F-friends?" Lirath asked.

"You don't want to?" Kael said.

Lirath frantically shook his head.

"N-no! I m-mean yes! Let me be your friend Kael'drin." The replied flustered.

"You can call me Kael. My friends call me that." Kael explained.

"U-um, you can also call me Lirath." Lirath said shyly.

"Okay Lirath, let's start by telling what you know of swordplay or using a bow." Kael begun with the lesson.

"I d-don't have any. T-this is my first time." Lirath said.

"Don't worry. I'll teach you so that you'll be able to surprise your sister." Kael explained.

"I-'I'll be able to p-protect my sister?" Lirath asked.

"If that's what you want." Kael shrugged. "Now let's begin with basic warm up exercises. We need to do this to prevent any of your muscles from getting strained. Just follow my lead."

Kael diligently taught the boy avoiding to look behind him. The palpable killing intent was so strong that he couldn't focus on what he was doing. Ah, what a short lived life he had.

After the stretches. He began teaching the boy the basics of dual wielding and a short explanation on the use of bows. Alas, his time was cut short at noon when the boy waved goodbye to attend his other lessons.

He looked in front of him at the bloodthirsty grin of his sparring partner. He could smell the thick scent of magic coming from her bow.

"Milady, would you consider holding back for poor little me?" Kael pleaded.

"No." Sylvanas said ruthlessly with a sweet smile on her face.

Oh he was getting well along with Sylvanas alright. He was also well getting acquainted with her blunted arrows that curved to strike him from behind. Now who could he blame for this situation that he put himself in?

"Curse you Zelretch!"

* * *

-Omake Extra-

Emiya Shirou could feel something wrong. He didn't know what it was. He was pretty sure it was not magical in nature, or else he could have caught a scent of it.

Something was very very wrong. As he traversed through the busy streets of London towards the Clocktower, he could feel is instincts blaring in alarm. He suddenly came to a halt when he noticed that he was walking alone what was once a noisy street.

Did he somehow enter a bounded field? That was impossible. He should have felt something if that was the case. He could not smell anything magical in the air, not a single fart.

He cautiously walk forwards, keeping himself on alert. He just knew he had to make it to the Clocktower, an irony that he would consider a den full of magi to be safer than the mundane streets.

He was nearly there. The entrance was right in front of him just across the streets. He broke into a jog in relief.

It happened so suddenly he nearly died. A truck was speeding towards him at a speed of a hundred miles per hour if that was even possible. His reflexes honed through years and years of combat reacted as he reinforced himself and jump backwards.

That was before he realized that another truck was coming for him from the other side just as he evaded the other one. He twisted himself midair with just a hair's breadth before he could have been hit.

He released his prana through full capacity and reinforced himself to the limit making a dash for the Clocktower's entrance. He ignored opening the gates in favor of just entering the bounded field covering the compound.

He sigh in relief as he got to his knees.

That was close. So close that he could have died. He swore that those things ridiculous trucks shouldn't exist.

Well, at least he got-

"OH BY THE ZELRETCH'S BALLS!-"

He started running in the opposite direction as he saw a truck speeding right for him. The damned trucks were out for him! He just knew Zelretch somehow had something to do with this.

The truck gaining up to him.

Emiya Shirou ran with all he had while cursing the wielder of the Second True Magic. When he could feel the truck nearly a meter away from him leaped to the right to evade but making sure this time that he had a ways to dodge a second truck. He watched as the truck continued onwards then turned right behind a building hiding it from view.

"Phew, it nearly got me-"

That was the last thing he said before he was run over by truck from behind.

Thus, Truck-kun strikes again. That was how Emiya Shirou's adventure in another world began. But that's another story for another time.


	2. Chapter 2

My beta still hasn't sent me a message so there might be a few mistakes here. I will reupload another copy if he contacts me. Anyways, please read and enjoy. Oh and please leave a review, I'm not changing the plot but a few suggestions to tweak the story a bit is welcome.

* * *

_All hope is lost._

_The patriarch is dead, our flight scattered and our burned to the ground._

_All hope is lost._

_Our leader is blind and crippled, our powers waning and our enemies increasing._

_All hope is lost. _

_Azeroth is doomed..._

-Excerpt from the Dichronos Codex page 01

* * *

-**0**-

Lirath sat down as he looked on. He could feel the tension in the air. It had been five years since Kael had began teaching him. He had learned how to fight and how to survive, specially how to survive. According to Kael as long as he survived he learned something from it. He would grow with the experience. He emphasized it to him multiple times. They were elves. They had longer lifespans than most races. As long as they lived to fight another day that was all that mattered.

His sister seemed conflicted about those teachings but she did not say anything. His attention was drawn when he saw the two fighters on the sparring grounds move. It was between his respected teacher and older sister.

They were at it again. Kael had shown surprising physical growth that he looked like a pre-teen elf which would be equivalent to somewhere around 70 years old. Though Kael easily towered over him he was still shorter than his sister. He tried to follow Kael as he danced around his sister with ease. Kael's unreal speed easily lead to his sister's defeat most of the time. As long as she didn't grab her bow that is.

Kael accused his sister of cheating whenever she wielded that bow and said something about it being a Noble Phantasm whatever that was. But when it came to pure skill with any sort of blades, Kael easily beat his sister nine out of ten times. Even then he was sure that Kael only lost during those times so as to appease her, and stop her from grabbing her bow.

After the a few minutes of delay, he finally saw his sister getting pushed out of the circle. He knew Kael could have ended it earlier and so did his sister but she seemed satisfied enough this time. He approached them after they stopped to take a breath.

Kael's hair had grown long enough to reach his shoulders but right now it was tied in a ponytail behind his head. He was clad in black leather armor that covered his upper body, nearly invisible dark grey runes etched on it.

He was also wearing trousers full of pockets, a dark red metal kneeguard was wrapped around his thighs. Even his arms were covered in the metal plated gauntlets, the same metal that most of his equipment was forged from.

While Kael had almost all of his body covered in armor, his sister was wearing a revealing steel armor and cloth that only covered her privates. Sometimes his teacher even teased his sister about it calling her a pervert. Then his sister would bring out her bow. They were funny that way.

"Your as good as always Teacher."

"Thanks Lirath, so how are you doing on your other lessons?"

"Great!" At least better than he was doing in his combat training.

"*Cough cough* Ahem..." He saw his sister staring at him.

"Uhm, you did great too Sis."

"Humph... of course. I only surrendered so that Kael won't be too tired to teach you. Isn't that right Kael?" He tried not smile at that. He was not as naive as his sister thought he was.

He knew. His sister always tried to appear strong. She had to appear strong. He knew that she sometimes cried herself to sleep blaming herself for the death of their parents.

"Of course, milady. You were splendid that I almost admitted defeat had you not done so. You truly are the Lady of the Battlefield. Your beauty knows no bounds and so does your ego!"

It took his sister a few moments to comprehend the full statement her cheeks turning pink when Kael said the word's 'beauty' and 'lady'. Before her face warped in anger when she realized the last statement was an insult.

He could already see Kael moving away from her and starting to sprint towards the trees covering the backyard of the Windrunner estate.

"You can run for the hills Kael! But you can never outrun my arrows." He saw his sister furiously grabbing her bow then running after Kael.

They were having fun on their own again. He wished he could join them on their game someday. But he knew he was too weak. He would get caught by her sister's arrows easily. Her sister always said bad words to Kael but he knew she liked him a lot. Her sister would sometimes go pink when she spoke with Teacher. A lot of the women that worked at the house would always do that to Kael.

They were all acting strangely.

He asked them about it one day and they laughed. They made him promise to never tell his teacher. They told him that when a girl always tries to make a boy notice her(attacking him out of nowhere with a rain of arrows), talks with him a lot (insulting and saying bad words to each other) and always trying to make physical contact(his sister always trying to strangle Kael) that meant that they liked each other.

Maybe he'd ask them about it when they returned. He started doing the basic warm up that Kael thought him. By time he was done they would be back. He used to have his combat lessons in the morning but Teacher suggested to have it at noon saying that he would be too tired for his afternoon lessons.

He could almost hear them now. His sister's distinct proud voice and his teacher's panicked yells.

"Now now, Sylvanas! You do know that you need me alive to teach your brother right?!"

"Don't worry Kael. I know you'll be able to teach even with an arrow to your knee! Let me empty out my quiver at you!"

He spotted them with Kael leaping from tree branch to another and his sister just right behind. He saw Kael deflecting an arrow aimed at his head.

"Are your trying to kill me, woman!?" He could see Kael with sweat running down his neck dampening his shirt.

Her sisterly was laughing darkly as he approach Kael with her bow in hand.

"Don't worry Kael. I know it would take far more than this to kill you."

He saw his sister releasing two, no three arrows simultaneously. Kael frantically parried two of them but he didn't see that last one his sister released when he turned to catch the third arrow. He made a sprint and was able to cross a visible line on the ground.

"Looks like I- Gaaaahhh! Not the ass! You sadistic bit-" He saw his teacher pause , look at him then continue cursing. "Brute! I was already over the line! You cheating who-" Kael stopped mid rant, took ahold of the arrow then pulled it out. "That's it! I'm not cooking for you for a week!"

Lirath could see his sister paling.

"Kael, I urge you to reconsider your words. I am still your employer." She said with the threat of death in her eyes.

"If you apologize then I'll consider it." Kael replied back with the same steel conviction.

He saw the two standing off waiting for the other to say a word for a minute before he finally saw her sister surrender. Umu. The threat of Kael's cooking truly was on a realm of its own. It could even make his sister who was more stubborn than a mule accept defeat. A terrifying foe indeed.

Even Lirath could say that his taste buds had long lost all hope of finding anything better than Kael's cooking.

"..."

"Please speak up, milady. I couldn't catch what you said just now." His tone was almost smug.

"I apologize for shooting you, ass!" He could see his sister trembling in shame.

"*Sigh*... That's good enough, I suppose. Give me a minute Lirath. I just need to heal this a bit." Kael took out a bottle from somewhere, dripped it on a cloth before dabbing it on his wound.

His sister approached and forcefully took the cloth from Kael and made him lie on his stomach as she applied the potion.

Lirath sometimes felt jealous at how friendly they were with each other. This was the only time he could see his sister speaking out her true thoughts. He wished he was older so that he could join their games.

He could run with Kael while they were being chased by his sister or maybe he could be he one chasing them!

"Gah! Can't you be a little gentler?!" Kael's faced twisted into a grimace.

"If you stop being a sarcastic ass. I'll think about it."

"Huh. Good point."

Kael writhed on the ground as Sylvanas cleaned the wound for him.

"Uhh...can I ask a question?" He stared at them innocently.

If they liked each that means that they were going to get married.

That's what his sister, Veeresa, told him in one of her letters. She said not to mention it to his sister Sylvie. Veeresa wrote that she might soon get married with the man she liked.

So Kael and big sister Sylvanas were also about to get married right? They liked each other and if married people always wanted to be alone together they would have a baby!

The maids at the house said so. They also told him not to peek at what they doing. That was bad. He was told to leave the two alone if they were purposely hiding.

If they had a baby, then he would be an uncle! Yay!

He gave himself a mental pat at his impressive mental deduction. He was so smart! Teacher always said he was smart but he should always ask questions to confirm it.

"Yes/What is it Lirath?" They both spoke up.

"So..."His eyes gleamed brightly with excitement. "When am I going to be an uncle?"

""Huh?"" That was their intelligent collective response at his question. Both of them stared at him as if he had grown a second head.

* * *

-**I**-

Kael felt like having good cold drink for the first time since he woke up in this world. No, he needed it. After Lirath's question, Sylvanas fled like the hounds of hell were at her heels and he was left to awkwardly explain to Lirath that they were not going to have a baby soon. He could not bear to ask how he came up with that question after seeing him sulk like the child he was.

Lirath did tell him to just ask him questions if he needed answers. But he did not expect that kind question, not in his wildest dreams.

He needed that drink.

He felt his nose pick up a peculiar and familiar scent.

His feet was already subconsciously leading him to the Wandering Inn. It was one of the few inns he frequented, managed by a strange quirky woman. He could swear the inn was magical. This inn appeared and reappeared at different times and at different locations.

It was releasing the heaviest scent of magic he ever had the luck of encountering in this world yet.

But it didn't smell bad, the inn carried the scent of _home_, _nostalgia_ and _comfort_. How he was able to translate that to smell? He would never know. His hands found familiar purchase on the door of the inn.

Pushing it open, he was greeted by the sight of a great variety of creatures. From the most alien creatures that hurt his eyes to look at to the most mundane humans.

"Welcome back Kael! Please take a seat here. Wilma! The specialty dish for table thirteen! So how was your day? Oops! Sorry! Hey no running inside!" She dodged one of the costumers who were chasing each other. Her torrent of words and cheerful demeanor would make even a dead man smile.

"Good evening Erin. Rum please and whatever special you have for today."

"Okay! Careful with that chessboard Thormund! Or I'll have hanged by your beard! And one Rum and special for table seven Guinne!"

The inn was crowded to a full house at the worst of times and peaceful at others.

"Looks like you're full today."

"Yeah, so tell me a story! What happened today? Come on, Kael. You rarely visit the inn."

"No, it rarely appears. That's why I rarely visit."

"Semantics! Just give some good stories!"

"If you stop talking and listen I'll tell you about it." This innkeeper had the strangest ability to get people to talk about even the most embarrassing stuff. And Erin only knew he came here if something absurd or terrible happened. Or rather the inn sensed him? He couldn't understand how the magic of this world worked. It was not like he had studied it though.

"Oh here's your order. Let me take that for your." Erin took the mug full of rum and the dish from her barmaid placing it on his table.

So he told her the story in between sips of his drink, and she laughed her ass off. What did he expect. It would be amusing. If it didn't happen to him.

"Hahahahaha! O-okay so pfffft- hahahaha."

He glared at her with all he was worth but it only seemed to make her laugh harder. He waited for her laughing to die down before he could speak with her further. He downed another mug, his fourth.

"Hahh hahh, I'm sorry Kael. That was just one of the funniest things I ever heard. You just made my day. I already like that Lirath kid without meeting him. Bring him next time you visit. So, you have another innocent woman caught in your grasp eh? If I didn't know you any better I'd say it was you fault Kael."

"It was not my fault." He said. He looked at the innkeeper blankly.

"See? That's what I'm talking about. You really are becoming an expert in shooting yourself in the foot. Tsk tsk. There's no surefire advice that I can give you to solve your problems but cliché, old 'follow your heart' will work."

"I was not asking for an advice."

"Riiiight. Thanks for the treat Kael! For that, your meal is on the house! Now I need to go before those writhing mass of alien tentacle snakes break into my inn."

He stared at the weird innkeeper running upstairs. He downed the last of his drink feeling a bit better. Damn. He still couldn't get ahold of the secret ingredient they used to brew this drink.

Well, he could always try next time. At least he got a few hints on how to improve his cooking further. He walked out of the inn then looked back. The inn was gone along with the heavy scent of magic it.

He felt that he'd see that inn again somehow.

He steadied himself as he was about to stumble. He shrugged. It was useless trying to cure himself of this magical intoxication. Erin's drinks had something 'magical' added to them. She claimed the ingredient was a flower given to her by a fairy. He would not be surprised if that was the truth.

He needed to get to the inn he was staying at before he would collapse. He also needed to visit the orphanage tomorrow...

Kael suddenly felt a chill go down his spine.

The alcohol was gone from his system. That was strange. He the change was so sudden it was disorienting. He looked around him only to notice something.

He was in a different place.

The vivid smell of corpses, death and decay covered the blighted land. The few remaining trees he could see were dying, their barks turned ashen. In front of him were the walls of a city. He was not in Silvermoon, that he was sure of.

Their was no living soul in sight.

He reached inside his robes to reach for one of his daggers. Ready and armed, he slowly made his way beyond the walls.

What he saw within was no different from the sight he saw when he was Alaya's beast. Bodies of the dead filled the streets. The closer he got to the center of the city the stronger the scent of death was. This could not be a dream could it? Everything felt too real.

He approached one of the corpses to confirm his suspicion. He kneeled down as he turned over the corpse. From the curves of her hips and the bulge on her chest he could tell it was woman even with a hood covering almost half her face. His heart beat faster as he saw the familiar indecent underwear like armor cladding the woman.

Kael lifter her head to check her neck, the hood covering her face falling as he lifted her head. Her skin was pale blue and her eyes were closed. Shirou's heart skipped a bit. Even in death, the woman's beauty was captivating.

He felt himself stumble backwards.

It was as if time had stopped. Ever so slowly, the corpse started to move. Under the light of the moon, elfin ears and delicate long eyebrows were revealed. The woman's eyelids opened to show blood red eyes shining with hatred for the living.

The woman in front of him was Sylvanas Windrunner, Head of the House of Windrunner, Captain of the 3rd Ranger Corps and his friend. She was dead.

The corpses around him started to awaken with her.

"Aaaaaaaaaaaahhh!" He felt fear. But more than fear, his burning anger and overwhelm grief making him shout out with despair.

"Kael! Are you alright!?"

He looked around to see where that sound was coming from only to realize he was on someone else's bed.

"Hey! Speak to me." It was Anadriel who walked into the room looking at him with concern. He was at Ana's house, the light of dawn was already shining in from the window. A potted plant cast a shadow into the room.

He tried to lift himself off the bed only to feel a throbbing ache on his temples. He felt dizzy and nauseous, a sure sign of a bad hangover. Outside the window, glimpse of sunlight could be seen along with the rising fog of precipitating morning dew from the forest.

"Are you alright? You look like you had a nightmare."

"I'm... fine. Please keep your voice down. My hangover is killing me." He slowly got off the bed to look for the bathroom. "How'd I get here?"

"I found you sleeping outside in an alley. My home was nearby so I brought you over. What happened, you don't usually drink like this." He look at Anadriel who was looking at him, her cheeks tinged with pink. He turned his vision to where she was looking at.

"I never took you for an exhibitionist Kael. You're certainly energetic this early in the morning. I never knew it could grow that big."

"Huh?" Was his reply before he felt the cold morning breeze blowing on a certain stiff part of his anatomy that was particularly active in the morning. His hands swiftly grabbed a pillow to cover his loins. "Where are my clothes? And why am I naked in the first place.?"

"I couldn't have you sleeping in filthy sweat stained clothes and I don't really have anything decent that could fit you. "

"Where are my clothes"

"It's on the lowest shelf behind you."

He stared at Anadriel who stared back.

"Can you please go out so I can change my clothes?" His asked.

"It's not like I haven't seen it already. But sure." She said as she winked at him.

"Thanks." He said blandly.

He waited for Anadriel to get out before setting a chair against the door. He was not ashamed of his body which was finely sculpted with muscles but he was also not comfortable with someone staring at him naked.

He needed a bath.

He put on his clothes and navigated the house, already familiar with it because the number of times Anadriel called him to fix something around her home. The house was big for a single person to live in, Anadriel had invited him a couple of times to live with her so that he wouldn't have to stay at an inn.

Her reason was valid. What stopped was him was his gut instincts telling something very very bad would happen if he agreed. Certain people would inflict ridiculous amounts of physical pain on him. His gut said so. One thing he trusted more than himself was his guts. Specially with how reliable it was showing to be.

He went outside the house to the well behind it.

After drawing enough to fill a bucket, he dipped his head in the cold water. It did wonders for his hangover as he shook the water out of his hair. His breath turned to steam, his eyes staring at the bright sunlight of dawn.

He turned his head left as he felt eyes staring at him. It was raven. It's feather dark as the color of night. The bird stared at him for a few seconds before flying away. The scent of _arcane_ slowly diminished with the creature leaving. Probably one of the magic creatures that inhabited this world.

His thoughts returned to the dream that he had.

Was that really a dream?

He still dreamt of his past as a Counter Guardian but this time it was different. It _felt _so real. There had to be something more to it. What confused him further was the anger he felt in his dream. Why was he angry?

'_Because something important was taken from you._'

His thoughts answered back. He combed his long hair back with his hand, drips of water running down his neck. He needed to cut it soon, his hair was already long enough to reach his shoulders. He usually tied it in a ponytail to avoid getting it the way during a fight. But it was a bother taking care of long hair, it was time better spent doing something productive.

"Hey Kael! Breakfast is ready! Don't you have work today?" He heard Anadriel calling from the window in the kitchen.

"I'm coming." He walked in on Anadriel with an wearing an apron preparing breakfast. She was placing the food on the table. The apron was something he sewed and gifted to her when she told him she was learning to cook.

He had taken it as his duty to teach her when he served him a twitching amalgamation of rainbow colored _something_ on a plate. At least she wasn't hopeless. On his rest days, he'd invite her to go to the orphanage to cook for the children.

She learned quickly. Not as good as him but good enough to match the food served at high class restaurants. But she still insisted she was not good enough.

"I don't have work today but I need to go to the smithy. I need new daggers." He took one of the chairs while Anadriel placed a plate in front of him. "Thanks."

"I could go with you. It's also my off today. And why were you drunk last night?" Anadriel was glaring at him which was as terrifying as a kitten. "You weren't drinking with some women were you?"

"I was at an inn that only opens up twice a year. They have great food and the only place that can serve drinks that can hit me. And no, I wasn't drinking with some women but a friend." He answered with a straight face as he put food into his mouth. He was technically correct.

Anadriel eyes narrowed but she didn't say anything.

Damn, she was sharp.

They ate with Anadriel telling him about her work and him responding. Overall it was a good meal.

"Are you going to the orphanage later?" He asked. His hand moving to collect the dishes.

"Yeah, I'm just going to wash some of my clothes. It's going to be sunny, a great day to air laundry. You can leave those dished there. I'll wash them later."

"Let me wash them, its the least that I can do as thanks for bringing me here last night."

"Its no problem. I told you to move in with, don't you like it here?"

He shook his head.

"It's not that. I like it here. I just don't want to deal with Coria's teasing if she find out." He knew she knew that was a flimsy excuse. He just needed time. He had too much emotional baggage from the memories of his past. A broken man like him didn't deserve their attention.

But he knew that deep down he was just trying to find an excuse not to get attached to her any further. It was too late for that. But he still tried to distance himself from the people he cared for.

That was one of the reasons he moved out of the orphanage as soon as he was able to.

He was afraid.

He was afraid to lose the people precious to him. If Rin was here she'd probably kick him in the arse and tell him to man up. Then she'd tease him relentlessly.

He was being a hypocrite. He didn't want to hurt them but distancing himself from them was in itself hurting them. He'd long accepted that though. After he was done with cleaning the dishes, he went outside to find Anadriel. He found her hanging sheets over a thin wire.

"Ana, I'm going."

"Take care Kael. See you this afternoon and don't be late." She said while wagging her finger.

"I know." He said with a smile.

He started walking towards the city. Anadriel's home was located outside the city, not far enough that she had to worry about magic beasts but near enough that it only took him 15 minutes of walking to reach the city gates.

He passed by the guards who gave him a nod. Most of the city was still waking up. Shops were opening their doors and stalls were being set up when he passed by the market.

His feet led him to the Craftsman district of the city. High elves were still elves. It was no surprise to him that most of the shops here were owned by tanners and bowyers. A large part of elves preferred using ranged weaponry.

There were very few smithies in the city, most of them catering to produce nails, horseshoes, hoes and other necessary tools. There was only a single smithy that crafted weapons. Though in times of war most of those smithies would be appropriated for use, the single smithy that produced blades for the city was owned by a dwarf.

Another stereotype he supposed. From what few movies he watched back on Earth, they were surprisingly similar to the dwarves that he knew here. They were stubborn, hard headed but extremely loyal, also having great fondness for wine.

He knocked on the door of his destination.

"I'm comin', what kinda bastards knockin' this earli'n the mornin'." Ragnarn's pronunciation of Common was tinged by his dwarven accent making him a little hard to understand at first. He had been learning various languages about the various languages from Coria before he left the orphanage.

He never knew where he could use them someday.

Dwarves were also crude. One of the reasons why elves didn't like them in general. But they usually meant well even with their gruff exterior.

"It's me, Kael."

The door opened to show a short stout dwarf wearing stained work clothes. He had a thick dark orange bushy beard and eyebrows.

Ragnarn Runehammer was a dwarf who originated from the great dwarven city of Ironforge. He himself claimed that he was eccentric among the dwarves.

"Haah? Whatca doin' here kid? Come in, dontcha stand there."

Kael followed closing the door after him. Numerous weapons lined the walls of the shop. Most of them looked simple, but were efficient to use. The few separate weapons on display were elaborately made to look good instead of being a good weapon. The good stuff for serious costumers were stored in the warehouse behind the shop.

"So, what d'ya need t'day?"

"I was thinking of making some daggers. The alloy I used last time makes the steel softer whenever I use magic on it."

"Ya'd been at it again eh. I haf'ta tell ya kid, ya need mithril for that one. I don't even know how ya can make it work with weak steel! Ya never used any good steel in 'em but they end up better than I'd expect." The dwarf said as he swaddled in front of him.

Kael followed the dwarf deeper into the shop into his smithy.

"How was the rune I taught you last time?"

"Eh the one dat' nearly set my shop on fire!? I tried usin' it on the alloy with the magmar core ta let the fire go to d' weapons edge but it keeps tryna go the hilt. It'd be useless when ye can't even wield it. It'd burn yer arms off."

"Where did you set the rune?" He asked curiously.

"Where da ya think? I used it on da' mi'l of d' blade for the sword and on the side of ta' axe."

" Have you tried etching the rune just above the handle and try adding a _forward_ rune within the rune formation? The last time you added a _block _rune so far from the rune formation, it exploded. I don't think you need to block the runes power but direct it instead. Magic is volatile, its better to direct it than control it."

"Heh! That jus' might work! By Bruga's beard I'd say ya got the soul of a dwarf, my boy! How in Gimli's name ya come up those ideas, I'll never know. Someday, if ya grow tired of this place. I'll show ya around Ironforge! I can' jus 'magine the look on those oldbeards faces when I show them runes!"

"I don't think I'll grow tired of this place anytime soon."

He felt Ragnarn hit him in the back with a heavy slap.

"Don'tcha worry kid. Ya gotta lot o' time to think about it. You'd be welcome as a friend of the dwarves if you ever plan on going to Ironforge. If ya need anythin' just holler. I'll come runnin' over. Now I need ta try that idea ya gave me." He saw the dwarf excitedly ran off to his side of the smithy, giddy to experiment with his newfound knowledge.

He had met Gornak three years ago when he decided to try crafting his own weapons. His was the only shop, or rather it was the best shop for crafting weapons. A large part of this shop was dedicated as a part of the forge.

The condition Gornak gave him to share his smithy was to craft a good weapon. He had challenged Gornak's pride as a craftsman. As all true craftsman go, he was obliged to accept when he told him that he could create something good even with regular materials.

To say the least, the dwarf welcomed him with open arms. The dwarf was also the first person he shared the idea of using runes with. According to the dwarf, a long time ago they used to have knowledge on the use of runes but the knowledge faded with the passing of time.

The dwarf had demanded to be taught with pleading bloodshot eyes. He had his reservations as a magus, but he never was a good magus. He accepted. The dwarf was even the ones to provide the conditions. He was free to use the forge and any materials he used could be paid at third the price.

He had thought the conditions were too generous for him and tried to compromise to at least pay the material cost by half but the dwarf denied him. His friend said that the knowledge he was providing was far more than its weight in gold. He acquiesced.

Kael took of his clothes and changed into the working clothes that he had on the shelf. It consisted of just his trousers and a leather apron. He was mostly able to stave of the heat using reinforcement. With the body of an elf, he was able to reinforce himself exceeding what his previous human body could take without breaking.

He easily surpassed his previous limits. He could even dare say that he had the potential to be faster than a Heroic Spirit in the lancer class known for their speed. The downside was that his strength did not increase just as much as he would have liked when he was reinforcing himself further.

The body of elves seemed to have been preprogramed as swift agile hunters not muscled brutes. It was unlikely he could surpass a dwarfs natural strength with his base strength. Maybe it was possible with time, he couldn't tell.

His hands were already moving without any conscious thought.

He was hammering at the blade rhythmically with minimum effort. He would sometimes pause to stare at it, put it in the fire or dip in the water. He was letting the accumulated crafting experience of uncountable number of weapons he had in his soul as his guide.

Even if he could no longer trace legendary weapons with magic, the knowledge of their creation, their experiences and information on how they were used were all stored within him.

When his hands stopped moving, he stared down curiously at the two daggers he had crafted. Curved daggers, perfect for slashing, cutting and faster hand movements.

This weren't what he had planned on making, but they came out similar to how he would have liked Kanshou and Byakuya as daggers. It just needed the runes formations for _attraction _that he had already perfected on another weapon.

He held the daggers in his grip and slashed the air with it. He still needed to furnish the handle with leather but aside from that. The weapons were as good any. But they were not good enough.

Gornak would have laughed and tried throttled him if he heard this.

But maybe his standards were just too high. What he was trying to create with his mortal hands were Noble Phantasms. Weapons wielded by legendary heroes. Weapons so powerful that the best of them could destroy the world.

He slumped in defeat. What he lacked was not technique and knowledge but the _materials_ needed to create them. What he lacked were materials with _weight_.

Mundane materials just weren't enough. If he tried to force a Noble Phantasms power on a normal weapon, it would disintegrate.

Just as how Gae Bolg was made from the bones of powerful Phantasmal Beast of the sea, he needed something similar. He needed to kill a beast just as powerful in order to add weight to his weapon.

It was too late for him too realize just how convenient his ability to trace weapons really was . He missed those days where he could just create those legendary weapons with simple prana.

"Well, time to clean up. I don't want those people going hungry." He shivered.

He had once forgotten to cook that one time. After he went back from his sparring session with Sylvanas, that same day Coria proposed to teach children about her type of magic. She needed his assistance. The next second he was led to the vegetable garden. He stood there confused until it started.

It was the longest time of his life. Four long hours of trying to evade murderous meat eating plants that wanted to a piece of him.

It took him a month before he was able to cook vegetables again. But even now he developed the habit of stabbing vegetables before he cooked them.

He swore he would never be late to cook again.

It was almost as bad as that time with Saber.

He cleaned his workplace and changed his clothes. He could clean himself at the orphanage later. He made his way to his friends side of the forge. He could see the dwarf with telescopic object attached to his right eye, his hand was holding graver.

He left quietly. It was a kind of silent agreement between them. Never disturb the other if they were at work.

He hurriedly made his way lest he be late.

* * *

-**II**-

The wind was softly blowing with the sun nearly at its peak. Anadriel was finally finished with the last of her laundry. It was nearly lunch time. She didn't want to be late for that chance to be with Kael'drin. She felt her heart skip a bit at that thought.

What she saw this morning had her hot and bothered. She wasn't completely innocent. She had read erotic romance novels before. She could imagine her hands sliding down Kael's abs into his V-shaped abdomen...

Bad Ana. She shook her head to clear her thoughts.

She couldn't remember when it started. Maybe she fell in love with him when they first met. Maybe she grew to develop feelings for man as she stayed with him. It was only when Coria had confronted her about it that she finally acknowledged that she loved him.

Coria had given her blessing. She had advised her to be more forward about it because Kael wouldn't notice otherwise. She even hinted she had a rival of some sort?

That blockhead. Stupid dense blockhead Kael. She didn't really have any prior experience with love aside from what she read. She had grown up with a very sheltered life. She grimaced. She didn't want to remember about those times where she was nothing but a figurehead, a tool to be used by her family.

She was almost thankful for the Second War.

She hummed happily as she went to the back of her home. She was running a late but it was better to be more prepared than not. It was also better to arrive late than never. She drew a bucket of water from the well and started stripping her clothes. The back of the house was enclosed by a high wooden fence and she didn't expect anyone to be about at this part of the forest at the time of the day.

Her large breasts popped out of her blouse. She was quite proud of them, if only they didn't cause so much back pains. Wide hips and flat toned belly. She pinched her belly a little. She might have been eating more lately. She inspected herself carefully. Even her thighs were getting a little chubby. A patch of honey colored hair could be seen above her puffy pussy lips.

This could not stand, she thought to herself. She'd have to start exercising. She got to work with washing herself. She made sure to clean herself properly. Kael always emphasized cleanliness even as an adventurer.

She quickly put on her clothes after drying herself.

"Craaack."

She turned to look behind her at the sound of the creaking. She almost missed it if it wasn't for the creaking of the branch the person was on. She staggered back at the realization. Someone had been watching her take a bath. She felt horror, disgust and anger. But most of all she felt fear. She quickly ran inside her house locking the door behind her.

She took deep mouthfuls of hair. She was hyperventilating. Then she realized she forgot to lock the front door. She heard a crack as the person outside tried to force himself in. She doubled the lock and tried to run for her front door when she saw a man was already inside.

Her face paled.

"Well, well what do we have here." The man drawled out as he slowly walked towards her, his walking staff thudding against the floor. It was an elf with a face that she recognized from somewhere. His was clothed in a sorcerer's robes, his face was thin and leering.

She made a dash for her room on the second floor before the creep could react. She doubled the lock on it moving the shelf and a chair to block the door. Moments later, she heard someone knocking on the door. She stayed as far from the door as she could.

Her hope that they would leave when they couldn't enter was shattered when a fireball blew her flimsy barricade to smithereens.

"You thought you could run you bitch!?" The man she saw on the front door walked into her room. He was followed by three other men, humans. There sinister grins on their faces as they brandished their weapons.

What she thought as a walking staff earlier was a mage staff.

"Who are you people!?" She shouted while her mind thought of ways to get out. She could jump out the window but that would injure her feet making her unable to escape all the same.

"Don't you remember me? Let me introduce myself, I am Dorandor Brightstrider son of Theramore Brightstrider."

A gasp of realization escape her lips. Most elves had a good memory and a long life. This made them vindictive by nature. They would remember every wrong done against and return it in kind.

This elf was a one of the many who had tried to harass her in the past.

"Oh? You remember now!? You and that Night Elf spawn dared to shame on that day!? ME!? YOU EVEN TOLD MY FATHER!?" She could see a dark smile form on the elf's lips. "I'm going to enjoy every moment as I make writhe beneath you fucking whore. Don't you know what my father did to me after you fucking accused me? He nearly disowned me!? It took me five long years before he finally let me back into my own home!?" The madman gloated.

There was an insane glint in the mans eyes. She tried not to whimper as the man reached for her face. Two of his thugs each grabbed an arm as they dragged her to her bed. They ripped her clothes off exposing her body. She felt violated as the men forcefully fondled her breast. They squeezed her hard making her almost scream out. They even tugged at her nipples, pinching it making red.

She grit her teeth not letting them see her pain. The men tied both of her hands with a rope, then they grabbed her legs forcefully spreading it wide open.

"Hey boss, can we fuck her already? My dick is itching for some action."

"Now for the fun part."

"Of course, but I would have the first taste. I'm going to enjoy every second of your suffering." She tried to struggle but the men firmly held on to her limbs.

She did not want this. She wanted to cry.

"PLEASE HELP ME!" She shouted out.

She was not optimistic enough to expect someone to save her. Her house was isolated in a part of the forest that surrounded the city.

If was to die like this she might as well die struggling. She gathered mana into her self. Most wizards and sorcerers needed a medium to channel their magic. Without it, they were useless. She had learned magic at a very early age but was never able to apply it.

One magic that they had taught her that did not need the use of a medium was a method to stun them momentarily. She chanted the spell in her mind as she had been taught.

'_Holy Light thy brilliance is unequaled, Brilliant Flash!'_

A flash of light momentarily blinded them

"Huh!?"

"Shit! My eyes!"

"Hold her down!"

"How dare you! You bitch!"

Ana snatched the knife one of the men was holding and plunged it into her chest. They could not react. When they light subsided, they saw a dagger sticking out between her chest. They had let their guard down not expecting her to kill herself. They had thought she would escape that was why they focused more on pushing her down than subduing her limbs.

"Gukh... guhk..." Blood spewed out from the wound in torrents.

_'I want to see you one last... Kael... I didn't get to say I loved you...'_

Her thoughts were full of regret.

"What the-"

"You stupid son of bitch!"

"Shit! Shit! Shit!"

"What a fucking waste. She killed herself."

The men cursed out as they tried to avoid the blood flowing out from her wound into the floor.

She felt a small amount of satisfaction seeing their disappointed faces. Her vision was slowly fading as more blood was pumped out of her wound.

'_I'm sorry Kael... at least I'd die with my body dedicated only to you...May...the...light... guide us... to be together... again... in the next... life...'_

Maybe the God of Light answered her prayers. Maybe it was a hallucination. But the last thing she saw was the face of the person she loved.

* * *

-**III**-

Kael'drin was almost done with his cooking. He just needed too wait for the stew to boil the meat to tenderize it further. He felt worried about Ana. It was almost lunchtime but she was not here yet. She might have been delayed but it was already an hour. Even is she was not able to help him cook, she would still be there to eat with them.

"Coria! Can you watch this for me? I just need to go check on Ana. She's might get late for lunch."

Anadriel was never late. No, she always managed to arrive far earlier than him all the time. She said she had the obligation as the student to prepare for her teacher.

"Okay Kael. Get it off the fire in about ten minutes."

"Okaay~." Coria did a mock salute with a hand over her heart.

He's gut was telling him something was wrong. He quickly made his way through the city neglecting to cover himself like usual. His red hair was swept by the wind as he made a beeline through the city crowds.

"Hey you! Stop! Stop!" He heard a guard shout after him.

But he ignored and further amped his reinforcement as he rushed towards the trail leading to Ana's house. The feeling of wrongness grew further as he caught the scent of magic being used. It was very faint but he was able to pick it up. His magical sensing did not work by common sense. As long he was within range of magic being cast he would still be able to pick it even if it was underground.

The scent of _light_ grew stronger. The spell had just been cast. It was growing fainter.

He saw the door to her house open. Then he heard the voices. He quickly made his way up the stairs to where the shouting was coming from.

"Shit! Shit! Shit!"

"What a fucking waste. She killed herself."

Anadriel's body was half naked with a knife sticking out of her chest. Bright red lifeblood was spewing out from the wound.

Kael felt something break inside of him. His jaw slackened and his thoughts grinded to a halt unable to accept what was in front of him.

"Hey, don't you think we could still enjoy her while her body is warm?"

"You're sick in the head. Do it on your own."

"Dumb bitch!" One of the men kicked her head.

Kael felt his world breaking. He felt his _soul_ cracking. His soul, that world filled with unlimited number of blades was changing.

'_You couldn't protect her._'

"Eh? Who's this?" The man sneered at him. "Hey boss, doesn't this guy look familiar?"

"Why yes, yes he is. We meet again Night Elf spawn-"

All the sound in the world disappeared. Time stopped. All he saw was red.

Red the color of blood.

_Sepia... I hope you can watch the Spring blossom again next year._

_Please smile for me Onii-chan._

_You are hopeless Shirou._

Within his soul, the twenty seven gigantic gears that had been spinning for countless number of years fell from the sky. In that unchanging landscape that had stayed the same for nigh eternity, massive layers off earth broke apart and flew to the sky.

Magma erupted from those rifts in the earth. The rusted sky was covered by dark storm clouds. Tornadoes formed and started to suck in the weapons filling the land making it even deadlier.

He felt like he was losing something important to him, something that he would never be able to retrieve if he let it go.

At that moment, he didn't care. He didn't care if he died as long as he was able to save the woman in front.

"_**Trace on**_." He ignited his magic core. What he was going to do was going to kill him, but it had the greatest chance of saving Ana.

He had never used his tracing anymore because rather than consuming prana, it was powered by his life-force. He would die if he used tracing.

"_My body is made out of swords._

_My blood is of iron and my heart of glass._"

He forced himself to stand as dizziness hit him. This was the price he had to pay to forcefully enforce his will on reality, his life.

"What are you looking at!? Attack him you fools!" The leader of the villains shouted, sensing something was wrong.

Blades sprouted from inside his arm. White hot blinding pain assaulted him, he ignored it. Swords were conjured from air behind him. With a flick of his finger, the three men were incapacitated. The blade had been aimed to run through them. It had such forced the three were pinned to the floor with the blades.

His fourth blade was blocked by a bluish spherical shield that protected the staff wielding mage.

"You dare!? _Ignis Sagita_!" The man shouted a line that he had heard more than he would like in the past.

An arrow of flame went out of the mage's staff. He dodged the spell with ease not breaking his stride as he walk towards the man.

"_I have overcome countless battlefields. _

_Unknown to Death,_

_Nor known to Life._"

More blades sprouted from his legs going towards his torso nearly crippling all his movements. Blood was flowing from the blades, crimson footsteps stained the floor. The grinding sound of steel could be heard with each miniscule movement he made.

"W-w-what are you!? Fel beast! I knew- Hiiiikkk!" The mage shrieked with fear as blades severed both of his arms. " My arm! No! Mercy! Please mercy! I don't want to die!" He tried to run towards the door to escape but two conjured swords sliced off his legs. Only his torso remained, blood spraying out from where his limbs had been.

A spears formed above the squirming pile of flesh impaling it but not killing it yet.

"Uwaaaaah!"

All the threats were neutralized but it was not over yet. He continued trying to keep calm while finishing the aria.

"_Have withstood pain to create a thousand weapons _

_Yet, those hands will never hold anything _

_So as I pray, Unlimited Blade Works_."

The effect that it should have had to the world did not materialize. He failed. His last gamble failed. He was not who he once was. The aria that described him in the past could not describe him now.

He failed. He failed. He failed. The self-imposed hypnotic calm was slowly crumbling.

He had never tried to recreate his Aria because of the reason that he wanted to forget about it. He did not want an ability that was the greatest reminder of his past.

Had he been able to materialize his Reality Marble there was a chance he could trace Avalon, the most potent healing Noble Phantasm that he knew of.

His body of flesh was completely covered in blades. It made for a macabre sight, a humanoid creature formed from steel. He drowned out the sound of dying screams behind him. His bladed finger grabbed the knife sticking out of Ana's chest and yanked it free. The blood which had been stemmed by the knife increasingly flooded out.

'_There has to be something I can do!_'

He tried to think of anything. He was grasping at straws.

_'I can't save her. I can't save her as I am now.'_

His whole life he had been a faker. Someone who created fakes from the original.

_'There has to be a way! If I can't save her as I am now... I just need become someone able to save her.'_

That was the way he knew how to fight, how to live. If he could not win, he'd just imagine something able to win against his adversary.

Even to his ears that sounded stupid. It was the height of stupidity. But even a fake could surpass the real one day. He had the blueprint within his mind but it was impossible to recreate with just that. He needed a miracle. He needed to rely on his memories and abilities as Emiya Shirou and use the body of Kael'drin Hopebringer.

In the past, he was only able to master very few abilities because of the limitations on his body and soul further limited by the world that he lived. Now, he had magical energy output that far exceeded what he had in the past by a thousand times over.

"**Kuahahahahaha."**He threw back his head as he laughed in realization. His delirious laugh sounding like steel grating against another.

Kael'drin Hopebringer was an elf, mixed blooded or so. Emiya Shirou had vast amount of memories that he acquired as a Guardian of Humanity. Memories contained knowledge.

He could still achieve a miracle.

He was only able to trace all of his weapons inside of his Reality Marble because the materials to recreate those weapons did not exist outside the world. That was only true back on Earth.

With one last attempt, he readied himself. He allowed his magical core produce magic energy to its very limits. He was dying. Only a few more minutes and he would not be able to revert back to his elfin form. With the lifespan of an elf, with such a life-force he could brute force his way onwards and combine it with his magical energy.

Without a second to waste, he started. He had never attempted this before finding no reason to slowly kill himself. He prayed to whatever God were out there hoping this would work.

_Judging the concept of creation_

It was a was a sheath made by the fae to serve as a scabbard for the Last Phantasm, Excalibur.

_Hypothesizing the basic structure_

A luxurious piece of equipment made of gold and decorated with blue enamel that seems more like a treasure to show dignity and nobility than a weapon.

_Duplicating the composition of materials_

It was crafted from Divine Mysteries lost to time, its appearance nothing more than a glamour.

_Imitating the skill of its making_

It was created by the fae through a miracle. Inscriptions written in Fairy letters were engraved on its center to indicate it was no work of man.

_Sympathizing with the experience of its growth_

It was given to Merlin who bestowed it upon Arturia Pendragon. It was later stolen through the machinations of Morgan Le Fay. It passed through the hands of mortal men until it was excavated at Cornwall finally finding its way to him.

_Reproducing the accumulated growth_

Avalon was used by Arturia as a shield. But that in itself is not the total truth, it isolates her to the Everdistant Utopia not allowing any harm to befall her. It is an absolute shield that not even the Five True Magics could penetrate it.

_Excelling every manufacturing process_

It is the sacred Utopia which Arturia seeks. A place where she could find eternal peace, tranquility and happiness. It could does not allow its owner to bleed nor suffer any illness and wounds.

He paused. Readying himself for the most important part.

Avalon is currently owned by Kael'drin Hopebringer.

He felt a dull ache in his core as the vast amounts of energy to materialize it was sucked from him along with his remaining life. Even with his intimate knowledge of Avalon, he was not able to decipher everything that made it what it was. He felt the world filling in the gaps as he fed his spell with more and more magic to supplement what he was lacking.

Wind started swirling around him and motes of light floated in front of him. Bit by bit the form of the familiar scabbard appeared. His eyes fell upon his creation and he knew it was incomplete. The dimension known as Everdistant Utopia did not exist on this world. He would never be able to use it as a shield like Arturia had but it still contained its miraculous healing properties.

With slow trembling hands, he lowered it on Anadriel's body. The sheath turned into the same motes of life and slowly sunk into her body. It was a beautiful.

With his task done, he welcomed death's waiting embrace. His consciousness slowly disappeared but his body remained in the same position. His body was kneeling with his head hanging back, his limbs loosely by his sides.

He had fallen off that damned road of a Hero. He had no regrets.

They say that the last senses that disappear with death is hearing. It was faint, nearly a whisper. But he was sure he heard the words that were spoken to him. A familiar scent tickled his magical sense, the smell of _arcane..._

"...I am sorry old soul but it may not be your time yet..." His senses were wrecked but he felt it when something was poured down his throat. "Now it is up to you to decide now." The voice said.

On that day Emiya Shirou died.

* * *

-**IV**-

A number of people were gathered and seated around a U-shaped table discussing the fate of a certain ex-hero. Only vague silhouettes of their forms could be seen but banners emblazoned with crests were displayed behind them to indicate from what House they were.

This was the Convocation of Silvermoon, the ruling body of the Kingdom on behalf of the King. Shouts could be heard echoing the room as the judges of the city argued over who was right and wrong. This case being the most debated over case since the war.

The chamber they were in had its windows closed barely letting any light in. It was one of the temporary countermeasures they had after a leak in information last month that they suspected was done by eavesdroppers who somehow made it to the third floor window of the heavily guarded High Council Hall. That was the public reason they gave.

The real reason was because it had been destroyed when two nobles of differing opinions had come to blows.

But to keep up the pretense of security, they were having the room reinspected for gaps in the enchantment while having it repaired.

Most of them showed clear interest in this case. Some were showing their interests more clearly than others. This case would set a dangerous precedent if not handled properly. It was about the handling of an adventurer who used dangerous and highly unknown illegal magic for self defense.

"Guilty!? How can a man be charged guilty if he attacked in self-defense!? Clearly, your greed is blinding Lord Drathir!"

"You accuse me of greed Lord Tidebreaker, when your decisions are being clouded by bias! Where is your objectivity in that!?"

"Shut your trap you cowardly rat! I've had enough of you!"

"NO! You shut up you muscle headed brute!"

But as most cases go, the argument was reduced to nothing but a petty squabble between nobles. The two nobles heated argument could end up another battle if not for most of the High Lord being in attendance to stop them.

These two loudest voices were coming from two rivalling nobles. Their fellow council members were conversing among themselves in low voices or merely watching with amusement and interest.

"What do you think Lady Windrunner? You personally know the boy-"

"He is man, Lord Lightseeker. He is a blooded warrior through and through."

"Er, yes. What do you think about the man? Is he guilty or not?"

"In my opinion? No, he should not be charged. Even if he used fel magic, it was to save a citizen of Silvermoon and to defend himself. I will not condemn such selfless actions. This is also based on my evaluation of his character."

"So you do not believe him guilty? That would put the countable votes to two against two. I'll withhold my own vote. I want to stay neutral on this matter."

"I'm surprised you would be willing to defend a magic user Lady Windrunner. You of all people who loath magic as nothing but a coward's weapon." A woman spoke up near them.

"What I hate is not the _fel _and unknown magics but the people who commit unspeakable crimes with it." Sylvanas replied tersely shutting down further conversations.

On the opposite of the table, two other people were conversing.

"So what say you, about the magic he used? Interesting isn't it? If he was charged guilty and executed, the knowledge would be lost with him. That would a loss we cannot take. I'd propose he be detained as magic experimentation subject. Even if he cannot speak, we should be able to garner something from his body."

"Your choices are tinged with self-interest as always."

"No no no. It's for the sake of the Kingdom. If we can advance our knowledge in the workings of magic, think of the things we could achieve! I am a patriot like no other working tirelessly for the Kingdom. How you wound me with such accusations milord. Everything I have done and will do are for the glory of Quel'thalas."

"Let's just execute him and be done it. He broke the law, he must pay for the consequences." Another woman beside them muttered lazily.

"Guilty or not guilty. If the accused was judged guilty, it would tighten all restrictions we have on the use of unknown magic. Some among us would greatly oppose that." A third spoke.

"If he was branded innocent, it would have heavy repercussions specially with our already tenuous relationship with the Alliance. It could set a precedent that would allow users of fel magic to more openly use their abilities. That would result in warlocks gathering to Quel'thalas." A fourth voice argued back.

The High Council was not as impartial as they appeared to be. Their judgement was influence by their own biased opinion, petty rivalry, self interest and desire. The High Council was composed of seven High Lords who ruled along with the King.

Decisions that resulted in a draw vote was taken over by the King.

Members of the Council are the Heads of the most influential families in all of Quel'thalas. It was not an exaggeration to say they controlled of the Kingdom.

An elf enter the room and approached the person at the Head of the table. He lowered himself and whispered to the person.

"High Lords and Ladies, a messenger from the Royal Palace has arrived." The elf raised his voice to gather the attention of his fellow Council members.

The discussion was brought to a halt with the elf messengers arrival, his coat of arms proudly bore the royal crest. The elf strode to the center of the U-shaped formation with the attention of the nobles.

"The case of Kael'drin Hopebringer has been brought to the King's attention. With investigation and inquiry by members of proper authorities, it has provided the King with basis to make a proper judgement. He has made his decision. Kael'drin Hopebringer is to be sentenced to a thousand years of exile from Quel'thalas.

Violation of the King's mercy will result in execution. He is not to step foot within the borders of the kingdom until he has served his sentence. His crime is not pardonable but his sentence will be revoked in only the 'most' extreme of circumstances. Barring a disaster the that can destroy the Kingdom and annihilate its people, only the King and with the total agreement of the High Council can a pardon be provided. Thus shall the sentence be given. The King has spoken."

"What!?"

"The King wants to release a criminal outside of Quel'thalas?"

"Is the King serious with this decision?"

"This can cause an incident with our allies if not handled well..."

Voices of confusion and disapproval simultaneously shouted out.

"B-but how about the magic!? The knowledge that we can-"

"If you question the King's decision then please bring it up to him. I am 'merely' a messenger after all." The crowd was silenced by the retort from the messenger. "Now, if you will excuse me..."

"This meeting is over, the King has taken over the case without knowledge but he has already spoken." A member said and stood to leave the room.

A few other people soon followed suit and left the room. Slowly the only member left in the room was the Head of House Windrunner and House Tidebreaker.

"Are you not leaving yet Lord Tidebreaker?"

"I'd ask the same of you Lady Windrunner. But by the Light what is the King thinking?"

"You seem to know something the Council does not." She asked.

"Hmmp, I wouldn't mind sharing this with as I know you're not the type to gossip. The person who was with Kael'drin that day was the last member of the branch family of House Sunstrider. Even if she was a branch family member, she did still have the blood of the Royal Family in her." He explained.

"You mean to say Kael'drin Hopebringer is going to be exiled because of rescuing a woman of Royal blood?" Sylvanas asked with a cold edge to her voice. "How utterly foolish... such stupidity has ruined his life? Worse yet, instead of a reward he was convicted a criminal?"

"I would not speak such things if I were you, Lady. You speak as if you know the boy when clearly don't. I have met him a few times in the past and he was not as stupid as you say he is. And the woman he rescued is as close to me as my daughter, don't disregard as if she is trash."

"That 'man' that we are talking about had such talent that I was planning on taking him under my wing _Admiral _Tidebreaker. Had he not been involved in that mess I would have taken him as my aide. He was someone I had vested interest in." She replied with gritted teeth. "I will go speak with the King."

Nesarion Tidebreaker glared at the woman as she left. He had never liked associating with these landlubbers. Specially with these arrogant noble scum. But he didn't dislike those who had spunk like the General Windrunner. Though she had just officially taken the seat of Ranger General three years ago, she had reformed the Farstriders to become the best it was since its founding.

The Farstriders were the elites of the High Elven Army. Traditionally, the position of Ranger General also translated to leader of Quel'thalas forces. But this only applied during war.

He sighed. His shoulders were heavy as he got out of the seat. Anadriel would not take this news well. He just hoped she would not do anything foolish like following the boy into exile. He could delay giving her the news. It was the best thing he could do until the boy was out of the Kingdom.

"I need a drink." He said to no one in particular as he left the dark room.

* * *

-**V**-

Another argument was taking place within the palace. King Anasterian was seated on a white marble throne. An orb was being held before him by a quivering servant who wished the two arguing beings would take no notice of him.

"You're branding him a criminal for saving someone of the Royal blood? This can cause a scandal." Kael'thas Sunstrider, Prince and Heir to the throne was speaking to his father through a communication orb.

"Very few know that the wench he saved was from our bloodline. It would have no consequences. The girl is from the ruined branch family." The king replied, his face hard and his tone unyielding.

"You can't be serious father! You are exiling someone of your own blood!? Please think this through!" Kael'thas shouted desperately finally voicing his true thoughts.

"That demon spawn is not of my blood. Have you forgotten it was he who killed your sister, the Light and the Hope of our people." The King stated with an even tone though he could not hide the hatred seeping out of his voice.

"Why do you hate him so much?" Kael'thas asked with grief.

"I don not hate him. I **loath **him with all my being. Your sister nearly had the cure that had plagued our people. She could have finished the cure that would rid us of the corruption that came with our us of the Arcane. She could have changed everything."

"That's how you've always viewed as. As convenient tools to you? You did not love your daughter. You only hate the fact that you were not able to make our people more powerful. You only wanted that power-"

"THAT IS ENOUGH!" An earthquake shook the room. Dust was shaken from the ceiling and fell down. The banners that decorated the room were moving as if wind was being blown on them.

The King's daughter had been a brilliant wizard. She was a genius like no other. She had travelled through Lordaeron and all the way to Kalimdor to find a way to help her people from the corruption they experienced from using the energies of the arcane. They did not know what happened there. The only thing they knew was that she came back home with a child in her belly. She died hours later after she gave birth.

That had happened while the Second War was engulfing all of Lordaeron. They'd had no time to grieve for her. Just a few days after she died, Silvermoon was besieged by the Horde.

"I listened to you once to spare that monster. Now he has shown his true colors. You should be thanking me that I have even spared him." The King spoke evenly.

"Have you still not forgiven the boy for a sin he did not commit? He did not kill my sister, you're own prejudice is blinding you father. How can you accuse the child like that? For your vaunted wisdom, how can you not see that he did nothing wrong?" Prince Kael'thas pleaded.

"If it was not for him, I would still have a daughter!" Pure arcane magic was emitted from the King in waves. The poor servant who was holding up the orb with a pillow was trembling in fear while praying to the Light that his bladder and bowels would hold up. He did not want to get executed for pissing and shitting in the throne room.

Silence descended as the King's anger ebbed.

"This topic is over Kael'thas. You can recall that spy of yours. Was it the Coria Daydreamer who informed you of this? I knew you sent her to take care of the boy. If there is anything you wish to talk about I wish to retire to my chambers." The King said with finality.

The King left the throne room with heavy footsteps. He took no notice of the servant who fainted after he left the room. A yellow stain left its mark on the royal carpet that day.

* * *

-**VI**-

Kael'drin was having doubts that day. He was doubting the existence of a benevolent God. He never did believe in God. His previous experiences proved that Gods were a bunch of self-centered egoistical jackasses.

But today, his lingering hope was quashed.

He was in a wide white endless space with no end in sight. Maybe it was hell? He was quite sure it wasn't heaven. Or maybe it was the Root of Akasha? No, he was severed from the Root. He was sure of it. This world was strange and operated so far from his previous worlds rules.

Maybe this place was this world's version of the Underworld, the afterlife, limbo, whatever they called where people went after they died. Not for him though.

Then there was the white ball of light that was persistently following him around while repeating the same line over and over.

"Will you accept the mantle of a Guardian?"

Maybe it was a specially made hell for him? Yes, that had to be it. This was EMIYA Shirou's specially prepared room in Hell and he was Suffering. Suffering with a capital S because what kind of torture was this?

"Will you accept the mantle of a Guardian?"

No matter how fast or how far he ran, the ball of light was persistently following him. He had tried attacking it with mundane means since he could not seem to use his magecraft here but it yielded no result. Finally, his mind snapped as his patience was drained by the ball of light. He kneeled on the ground and started bashing his head against it.

"Will you accept the mantle of a Guardian?"

He gave up when instead of a hard surface, the only thing he felt when he was trying to smash his own face in was a soft cloud like substance.

"Will you accept the mantle of a Guardian?" The almost mechanical voice repeated.

"Fuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuucck!" He cursed out with all the air in his lungs.

"Will you accept the mantle of a Guardian?" The ball of light kept repeating.

The first thing he did when he met the ball of light was flash it a middle finger and run. That had gotten him nowhere.

"Will you accept the mantle of a Guardian?"

He slumped on the ground in defeat. He let gravity take over as he let laid down on the white surface. His arms were spread eagled as he tried to glare the ball of light to death.

"Will you accept the mantle of a Guardian?"

At least the it was providing him the option unlike that bitch Alaya. Only thing was, the ball did not take no for an answer. It would probably keep on doing this until he gave up and said yes.

'What have ever done to deserve this shit..." He said.

"Will you accept the mantle of a Guardian?"

"No."

"Will you accept the mantle of a Guardian?"

He ignored it and tried to keep the voice out by thinking of things. Was Ana alright.

"Affirmative. The being known as Anadriel Sunstrider has shown no vital signs of impairment to her continued existence. Will you accept the mantle of a Guardian?"

So the thing could read his thoughts and maybe it was able to see what was happening outside his body.

"I thought I died."

"Negative, the being known as Kael'drin Hopebringer is alive with no current threats to his continued existence for now. Your body has exhibited near miraculous regeneration because of ownership of alien artifact labeled Avalon. Avalon has already returned to its rightful owner after finishing designated task. Will you accept the mantle of a Guardian?"

"Will you stop repeating that line and answer my questions first."

"Affirmative. Negotiation to assign being Kael'drin Hopebringer as Guardian of the world of Azeroth has begun."

"So first, what are you?" Kael asked.

The ball of light compressed to show a floating 2D image of a cross with wings. But instead of horizontal parts, it had wing like arms of a butterfly. The head had the symbol of what seemed to be a spider or a tick facing down.

"Xera have been designated the name of Xera, the 'Naaru Prime' or Light Mother in Common tongue. We Naaru are beings who have existed since the beginning of time. We were 'born' into existence to oppose the Void or darkness. Current set objective is the destruction of the Burning Legion."

"Wait, wait a moment. So you are the Light that the most of the High Elves worship?"

"Affirmative."

"So you're a god."

"Define god."

"Beings of great power who rule over this world?"

"Xera has determined that she is not a god."

He faced palmed.

"Okay so why do you want me to become a Guardian or whatever it is you want?"

"You are the lone descendant of the Chosen One. The Chosen One has declined the offer of his fated destiny and has attempted to destroy Xera. Xera was able to successfully escape. Xera has sustained damage that impairs her thought process but otherwise, Xera is fully functional to carry out what must be done."

"So my parent-"

"Yes, being designated as Illidan Stormrage has gone against the prophecy. Factors of refusal to accept has been listed out and stored within memory. Would you like me to list them out?"

"Please don't read my thoughts and speak only after I'm done. No, I don't want to know why he refused. It couldn't possibly be something like he controls his own destiny right?"

"Affirmative. Illidan Stormrage has stated said word. Xera has made error in her calculations and implemented plan outside of specified time. With Xera's estimation and calculations, Xera has determined it is no longer possible to assign Illidan Stormrage as the Chosen One. Xera has therefore arrived at the conclusion that she must assign Kael'drin Hopebringer as the Chosen One and next Guardian of Azeroth."

"That is the stupidest thing I have ever heard. Just because my sperm donor refused to become the _Chosen One_ doesn't mean you can pass it to me! Besides how did you come up with the idea that one of the greatest villains of this world could end up as a _Chosen One_!" Kael shouted with anger.

He cursed his luck. He learning things he rather have not known. Ah, ignorance was bliss.

Xera even admitted that she, if the thing even had a gender, had problems with her brain. Maybe she was insane already.

"Negative. Xera's thought processes are being hindered but have not found signs of chaotic thoughts." The gender neutral voice replied. He though he could even detect sarcasm on her voice.

"Affirmative. Xera has been recording thoughts of being Kael'drin Hopebringer to increase chances of negotiation success. Xera has found interest in satirical and ironic use of words to inflict emotional pain and/or annoyance on target."

Okay, the damn thing was even trying to learn sarcasm. Such joy.

"Xera has recorded being Kael'drin Hopebringer's words and will find the opportunity to use it. _Such joy!_" His brows started twitching. He really really wanted to destroy this thing now. He wanted to blast it with a Caladbolg II. Oh how he wished he could.

"Can you just call me Kael then."

"Affirmative. Xera urges Kael to decide to choose to be a Guardian. Though Kael's vitals are fine, his lifespan has been estimated to last with only two remaining hours remaining. Variables have been included in this calculation."

"I know there must be more you're not telling me. If I got two more hours then I want to make sure I'm not making a mistake. What does it mean to be a Guardian?" He asked.

"Xera accepts Kael's reason for asking. Xera was able to scan through Kael's surface thoughts. Xera assures Kael that first of all, the contract can be terminated by the contract signees individually. Though the percentage of chance Xera will terminate the contract is 98%."

"And?"

"Kael has the freedom to of choice to act or not to act."

"Isn't the contract giving me too much power. Surely there must be a clause that states something like I'll die if I use the power for evil or something?" He asked.

"Xera can directly inject the complete contents of the contract into Kael's mind to make the negotiations faster. Would Kael be willing to accept?"

"That's convenient. Okay, you can- Fuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuucckk!" Kael writhed on the ground waiting for the headbreaking pain to subside.

"Xera has successfully completed information injection."

"Couldn't you have warned me!?"

"Xera expresses sadness in the fact that she was not able to make the injection more painful. Xera apologizes for that fact."

"You're a sadist." Kael rubbed his temples to somehow remove the phantom pains. His thoughts went to the contract and the information appeared in his mind like it had always been there. He wasn't unfamiliar with this but it still felt weird.

To summarize the contract, he was going to be the defender of Azeroth to prevent it from falling into the hands of someone called Sargeras. He was to protect this world at all cost, if the world was destroyed he would die. He would die if the world was destroyed so that part was rather redundant.

On the chance that he grew powerful enough, there was a chance he would be call upon to join the Army of Light.

But why was he getting a bad feeling about this. Most of the contract stipulated terms to restrict Xera more then him. Was she hiding something?

"Negative. Those are all the conditions of the contract. Xera cannot tell untruths. They are contradictory to our existence."

So she could not lie, that didn't mean she could not hide the truth.

"Affirmative."

She confirmed it.

He looked through the contract again to make sure he was not missing anything. Nothing. He could find no loopholes in the contract that Xera could take advantage of.

He took a deep breath. His guts or instincts that he had been relying more and more lately told him that he needed this power. Something very bad was going to happen in the future and if he wanted to protect those close to him he needed it.

Besides, this time he was going to become a monster for the sake of people important to him. Unlike the him in his previous life who saved people he didn't even know of.

"Xera wishes to take further inquiries by what Kael means by previous life but prior observation indicates that he will not answer the question."

"How astute of you... well, I don't really have much of a choice. You mentioned that I only have an hour or so to live. So how am I going to become a Guardian if I only have that much time?"

"Xera has made contact with being designated Azeroth. Azeroth has facilitated the means for Xera to make contact with Kael through the Prophet Medivh. Xera and Azeroth both agree for continued existence of planet _Azeroth_. Azeroth has agreed to extend Kael's lifespan furthermore Azeroth is willing to assist Kael as Azeroth's favored child. If that is all, this is to confirm, Will you accept the mantle of a Guardian?"

Kael felt powerless yet again as he made a choice to accept a contract from a higher being. But this time he had a choice, a goal and something to cherish.

"Yes, I'll accept it."

[Congratulations, you have been confirmed as the Guardian of Azeroth]

Kael saw a floating blue box in front of him before he fainted and woke up to the real world. What he saw made him wish he could faint back out again.

* * *

-**IV-**

Earlier that day, Sylvanas Windrunner stomped her way out of the palace after being denied an audience with the King. She was not happy. She was infuriated.

First that idiot nearly got himself killed in saving a woman. He was not that weak the he could have resorted to Fel magics to defeat his enemies. She was very much sure of it. But proof had been left behind. Traces of unknown magic had been detected. Greater proof was how Kael had transformed into a grotesque imitation of an alien creature that was more likely to be seen in the Twisting Nether than in this world.

"Then I have to discover that that woman is close to him..." That part angered her more than the first part. She already knew Kael was an idiot. "I swear when he wakes up, I'll chase him down out of Quel'thalas myself." But she could not hide her worry.

The idiot hadn't woken up in three days now.

The city guards had notified her after Kael when he had run out of the city without stopping even when he was prompted to. They hadn't contacted her directly per se but her Rangers. They had notified her immediately since they knew he was a regular visitor to her home.

She followed after them when they went out to track Kael.

They found him in a house that was built near the city. What they found inside was a the brutal and slow death of four people and Kael who was kneeling in front of a naked woman.

That would have bothered her more if Kael did not appear like a humanoid monster made of blades. She was sure nothing happened between him and the woman. Or else...

People around her got out of the way as they saw the crest on her attire and the scowl on her face.

She made her way to one of the healing houses in the city that Kael had been sent to.

There were guards posted outside but they didn't cause her a problem. When she got inside, she found Coria Daydreamer, the orphanage manager and whom Kael affectionately called mother. He didn't directly say those words those. He said it in a way more roundabout manner. That was just the way he was and she got used to it.

"Oh, Lady Windrunner. How are you?" Coria asked.

"I'm fine Coria, and can you stop calling me that please. I'd prefer if you call me Sylvanas or Sylvie..." She said with the volume of her words going lower at the end.

"I'm really happy for Kael. It's just that I've been worried about him. He hasn't woken up in three days now." The worry could be seen on her childish face.

"Don't worry, I know Kael and he isn't so weak to just flip over like that. He'd be more worried about you. You haven't been sleeping and you probably haven't eaten yet. Please go take care of yourself. I'll watch over him for you. Kael would not be happy to see you like that." She said with a bit of force as she looked at the woman. Her eyes were bloodshot with lack of sleep and tear marks could be seen on her gaunt face.

"Thank you Sylvie. I'll... I'll be going then." Coria said as if finally realizing the state she was in. "Please take care if him for me."

"Of course. He is an important friend annoying as he is." Sylvanas said as she saw the woman out.

Sylvanas took the chair Coria had been sitting on and observed Kael's sleeping figure. She saw small traces of white hair appearing on Kael's bangs.

Kael usually had a very sullen and serious face. He rarely smiled. That was why it was her first time seeing him so defenseless. Her heart throbbed harder in her chest. Whatever spell Kael had used, it had slightly changed his appearance. It made his body age older. Instead of a young prepubescent appearance that she was used to, he looked like a young man about to step into adulthood.

His appearance drove home the fact the his physical appearance would finally catch up to his mental age.

Her face drew closer to Kael's to observe it further. That was what she reasoned. A hand hesitantly reached out to tenderly touch Kael's face. He looked more handsome as he aged. Gone was the trace of baby fat on his face changed by sharp features and a mature countenance.

She showed a smile that rarely appeared on her face.

As if drawn by a mysterious force, her face drew closer to Kael's. She was mere centimeters away from connecting her lips with his when the door behind her abruptly opened.

As if waiting for it, that was the time Anadriel decided to show up.

Sylvanas was stared at the woman in question. She was fast enough to react and was able to straighten her posture. Her face still had a trace red on it. She tried not to show her hostility but failed.

"Who are you? And what are you doing here?" Sylvanas asked as she tried not to glare at the woman, specially at her breasts. They looked larger while she was naked. Those cursed lumps of fat. Of course she knew who this woman was.

"I should be the one asking you that question. I'm merely here to visit as his girl friend. Lady Windrunner what are you doing here?" Ana's tone was still respectful though it was confrontational.

"I'm here to look over Kael's condition. If you're here to visit I apologize but we cannot allow visitors at this time." Sylvanas glared at the woman hatefully, she had nearly done it but this woman showed up to interrupt her alone time with her man.

Her man. She didn't know where that came from but ignored it in favor of confronting this intruder.

"I am not breaking any law am I? Is it really wrong to visit as his girl friend? I have heard of no such laws providing you the authority to stop me Lady Sylvanas." Ana could see the woman holding down her irritation. She held her ground when Sylvanas drew near her to butt her head against hers. Nearly.

Sylvanas was confused for a second until she looked down at their chest. Ana's chest was jutting out forcing her back by a few inches. On this day, Sylvanas had a newfound hatred for big chests.

They glared at each other. Not letting themselves show weakness.

That was when Kael decided to wake to the sight of two women nearly kissing with their eyes locked in a passionate gaze. That his perspective.

Two pairs of eyes snapped to him.

He laughed nervously.

"Ahahaha... please go on. I'm just going back to sleep now." He laid back down on the bed and pulled the blanket over his head in hopes that either they left or ignored him. Sadly for him, his wishes would not be granted.

""Kael!"" The two women spoke up at the same time temporarily ignoring their earlier conflict to check over his condition.

He was dragged out of the bed and made to kneel down as the two women looked at him.

""Kael, what's your relationship with this woman?"" Their voice sync together to form a terrible dirge for Kael. To answer or not to answer, that was a dilemma that has plagued the male of all sentient races across multiple worlds. Kael chose the wisest option. He decided to leap out of the window and run for the hills.

* * *

This chapter should explain a bit why I have the AU tag.

Notes:

I was not expecting much from the story but thanks for the reviews, favorites, follows and support. A lot of thanks for the great reception. Anyway, yeah. I did make a mistake on the last chapter about eye color. According to Wiki-sensei, high elves have both green and blue as common eye color.

For Kael's father? Come on, I wanted the 'whosyourdaddy' and 'I am your father' jokes. It'll be fun.

As for reasons why I needed, to change his name... can't really come up with a valid reason why he needs to keep his name. I would consider changing his name if it wasn't Counter Guardian EMIYA and it was Emiya Shirou the naive idealist. Former is someone who already threw away his name, pride, ideals and all that while the latter is... he's someone who wants to follow the beautiful but foolish path.

Just to let you all know the spefic timeline the story started was somewhere around 10-15 years after the Second War and maybe 5-10 more years before Warcraft III. Can't find any info on Warcraft timeline so it's an estimate.

***Spoiler Alert***

Aside from that. I hope no one flames me for this. But I did plan it out so here's a short explation on why things ended up this way. I had written something mentioning this in the third chapters intro. Beware, spoiler for the story incoming.

So one day, the little cleaning robot Nozdo was doing his job as usual. Everything was normal and clean. Here's the thing, Nozdo-kun was made with his eyes attached to a stick. He could 'see' everything with his eyes. He used it for the greater good of 'cleaning' bad things and making sure everything was where it was supposed to be. Whether it was good or bad. He was only following his programming.

Suddenly, Nozdo-kun's duty was interrupted when his 'vision' was taken away by a cute little puppy. The little harmless puppy took away his eye on a stick. Nozdo-kun followed after it using his other senses to find the puppy. But what ever Nozdo-kun did, the puppy only seemed to be getting further away. His situation was getting worse.

In a panic, Nozdo-kun tried to obliterate everything in his path to get to his eye-on-stick back. Unfortunately, that was not the answer. Because in the chase, Nozdo-kun ended up following the puppy to it's home. The puppy's home was also the place where an Ultra Mega Super Stronk nascent titan baby was sleeping in. In Nozdo-kun's panic he sent a blast of energy at the sleeping titan baby.

The titan baby reacted in a natural manner by swatting away at the location where it was stung. The baby was 'Super' stronk, it was even stronger than all of the people in the world. Super Titan baby was so strong that when Nozdo-kun was hit by the air pressure from the baby-swatting, his body was smashed to smithereens. Only his head remained.

With Nozdo-kun destroyed, dirt and things that should not be there were being misplaced. In Nozdu-kun's eyes. Everything was going further from what it was supposed to be. Thus Nozdo-kun's story comes to an end. Nozdo-kun's absence would change many things in the years to come.

That's the gist of what happened and why things changed. It's a butterfly effect. With Nozdo-kun so wounded, his flight would try to find a cure or a healer good enough to heal him. And the first thing that would come to their minds would be a certain Red-dragon matriarch. I'll stop spoiling any further than this.

Another bit of spoiler is... it's actuaclly Kael(Emiya's) fault why everything changed.


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: I don't own warcraft or FS/N or related series.

A lot of thanks guys. It's because of the reviews and support that I continue to write this. Hope you enjoy.

* * *

_I remember it so vividly like it was yesterday._

_It had happened so suddenly without warning. _

_The future was covered by 'fog' and 'shadows'. We could not 'see' anything. The flight was in an uproar. Some had thought that the ends of time had arrived undetected while other's believed that our enemies had finally triumphed against us. But in my opinion, I believed it what had happened was something akin to a sickness that had spread like lightning over our people._

_The elders had gathered all the most capable Dragons and Wyrms together. I had been but a young man, a Drake, at that time yet I had felt the great danger that befell us. I had considered it my pride when I found that I was the only Drake chosen among several Dragons included in this great incursion._

_The patriarch, Lord Nozdormu, was stirred from his dreamless rest. Taking command of the flight Lord Nozdormu searched out the pathways of time. Our elders, the Wyrms had commanded us to keep watch while they conducted a massive ritual that would enable us to find the source of the 'cause' of this event. I, along with several other Dragons were too inexperienced to peek into the complex weaves of time without our gifts of 'sight' to aid us. _

_We were assigned to guard the area while the Elders and the Lord peered through time._

_I had always been curious as to how the elders did it, how they 'saw' the future without the blessing the Titans had given us. Unable to resist my desire I had carefully snuck in within the timeless chambers wherein they had conducted the ritual and observation. Hidden away I watched with bated breath as the ritual had concluded and what answer the elders may have found. But what they found out was something so inexplicable, so utterly terrifying, that even the wise patriarch had screamed in pain at what he saw._

_Unfortunately, I had been caught before the elders could discuss the details. But despite that I could never forget… I could never forget the fear in our elders faces of the knowledge they had gained. The truth they had found. _

_The elders had been furious when they had learned what I had done. They had only let me go after I had been made to promise to never divulge what I had seen under the threat of death. I complied without any hesitation. Afterward I was confined for the duration of the excursion. They had not sent me back but rather chose to have me watched by the adult Dragons._

_It was only later that I heard of what had happened._

_The Lord had decided to delve into the pathways of time to resolve it himself. No one was to follow. We had expected his victory…We had hoped for his success… But all of that was forgotten the moment our patriarch returned from his mission. _

_The Lord had returned with wounds so grievous that it had not only stunned but disturbed us deeply. His wings were torn, his scales broken, and his body riddled with massive wounds. The elders had tried numerous times to heal the injuries but every attempt ended in failure._

_Before the Lord went into deep slumber in an attempt to recuperate his strength, he had made a declaration upon us all, his children. I will never forget what he had said at that time. Had it not come from anyone else but our Lord they would have been branded a failure, a heretic, and a sinner. _

_"We have failed in our eternal task. Our purpose is no more. Live and find life, my children. The Bronzeflight has lost its sight."_

-Excerpt from the 'Dichronos Codex', translated by elven historian Fiora Everbright, published in the year 5020. The controversial results of the translation were highly debated and have become one of the hottest topics of research in the College of Arcadia.

-**I-**

It was a good day, a glorious day to live. Kael'drin Hopebringer was not fleeing from women, nay he was making a tactical retreat in the face of a hopeless situation where the only outcome was imminent death awaiting him.

Only when he was a good distance away did he stop running and become fully aware on the incongruity of his movements. Checking himself over while testing his body's reactions he began to realize that he had grown physically older. The oddness in his motions was his own mind adjusting to the sudden change that had happened to his body. According to Xera, it was a side-effect from the magic he previously cast which nearly resulted in his death.

He had used structural analysis on himself to further inspect the changes he underwent as he couldn't look in a mirror at the moment. He cursed his luck once again when he realized he had not aged _enough_. His appearance had aged to look like a person in his late teenage years. Unfortunately, was that he still had to suffer through the hormones that came with it, it seemed. Curiously, he still hadn't developed physical signs of facial hair such as the beginnings of a mustache or the start of a beard. Both of which tended to show up around this age or at least they did when he was human anyway. He couldn't help but wonder if his elven heritage had anything to do with it.

Regardless he shook off such thoughts and proceeded to run towards his target.

He was following the scent of the a_rcane magic _that he had sensed thrice now. Traversing through the greenery of the woods to end up in a small clearing where a man was apparently waiting for him.

The man in front of him was seated upon the stump of a tree. The visible features from the brown robes that could be seen were a bearded chin and sagging skin, a clear indicator of the magic user's age. Judging from the figure of the man Kael observed, he noted the stranger was quite tall and holding onto a staff. The wind gently picked up blowing the man robes in the direction of the wind. Putting everything together from his observations, the old man was most likely a wizard of some sort… fantastic.

The chattering of critters and sound of nature tickled his elven ears.

"Are you Medivh?" Kael asked with caution and masked suspicion as he stared at the old man.

"I've been waiting for you Kael'drin. Or should I call you Emiya Shirou?" The stranger answered.

His body tensed when he heard that name. His mouth was already twisting into a frown before catching himself and shifting it back into a neutral expression. He had already decided to throw away that name, just as he threw away the ideals associated with it.

"Enough with this game, I want answers. Who are you and why did you save me?" Kael demanded with impatience in contrast to his normally calm behavior. The old magic user took this in stride however as he proceeded to respond to Kael's demands.

"I am Medivh as you already know. If you want answers then I shall tell you. I saw the future Kael'drin, and do you know what I saw in that future? I saw you as you lead the Army of the Undying. I saw you stand before the throne of the Lich King. I saw you march upon Azeroth killing all who stood in your way and enslaving them against their will.

"I saw you burn the World Tree. I saw everything. In your quest to save the world, you will devour all life upon it. You will become no different from the enemy you seek to destroy. You will become Death's strongest sword. You will claim that your actions are to save the world. To save everyone, but it will only result in eternal damnation for all the souls who follow you.

"I saved you because your _death _would bring untold destruction upon this world. You had become a vessel for the Lich King. Your ideals would be corrupted, twisted beyond measure. You will promise to save the world by 'making' sure no one stayed dead." Medivh spoke gravely as he foretold what he had seen with his own eyes. His diatribe went uninterrupted as Kael listened with rapt attention.

Kael could not say anything. He remembered a dream that he had a few nights ago. He could understand what Medivh meant by 'death'. But what he could not believe was that he would be the reason for all that?

"That... that is impossible. You lie old man! I do not have the power to do something like that." He replied weakly. Yet, he could not erase the feeling of deep unease he felt within.

"This is not a lie Kael. You will become Death's Scythe, an unequaled Champion, the Paragon of War. Do you know what I saw before all that?" Medivh asked.

"Stop." Kael growled out. He knew.

"You will kill all those you held dear-"

"**Stop.**" The sheer coldness and indifference as he unleashed his aura were palpable and the full might of his magical energy created winds that flew around him.

"You know that all I speak of is the truth." Medivh said as he held onto the lapels of his robe.

"Give me proof..." Kael said weakly as he allowed his aura to fade away, the very winds subsiding with it.

"Very well, if that is what you want..." Medivh moved and raised his arm. A palm was placed over his eyes and his head.

_There standing upon the path to Silvermoon stood a man clad in holy mithril armor, armed with a blessed bow and a sword of light. He was Quel'thalas' last soldier as the civilians were evacuated and the elven armies retreated. _

_He was no General, nor was he an Archmage._

_But he stood there to protect the gates to delay the enemy to ensure no innocent would perish. As the skies darkened with magic and the undead marched forward, he held out his hand and thrummed his bow. As he drew his arm back, an arrow of light formed upon the bow. He aimed and released it at the army of undead._

_Then there was an explosion of light._

_For a moment the marching undead paused. However, they soon resumed the warrior stood upon the narrow path. The magical fires at his sides were his walls and the city to his back. An endless, tireless, fearless army lay at his front before him._

_Any warrior would have quailed and fled before such might. _

_But not this warrior, he would receive no thanks and few would grieve him. Nonetheless, he stood his ground and stopped the Dead. With bow and blade he drove them off. The dead would pile and pile as high as the walls. But the man would not fall._

_For seven days and seven nights he fought continuing to hold off the undead scourge against all odds._

_Alas, for all his strength and boundless courage, he was mortal thus he had the weakness of all who lived. He felt his throat burn, parched and thirsty. His arms, weak without sustenance nor rest._

_At last, weakened and wounded... he met his mortal end. But not his role upon this world... no… that was far from finished._

_The warrior rose up once again from deaths cold embrace taking his arms and mighty bow with him. His sword was twisted, corrupted with death. So much death…_

_The peerless warrior, who once fought to protect the innocent, now hunted those he had stood to protect. He screamed and thrashed within his vessel but the Lich King saw fit to seal him and raise him as his blade. He crafted the mightiest magic to enslave the warrior's soul._

_The warrior would become the herald of death. He would be renamed Asura.__If the who one ruled him was death, then he was _**_War. _**

The vision of changed as he felt like he was being pulled up from the ground to the skies and the stars. The vision focused on another world.

Kael staggered back from Medivh's outstretched hands. He felt the gastric acid rising from his throat but he held it down. He grit his teeth at what he saw. He knew there would be more. He didn't see what happened to that warrior but he could make a guess. He took as step forwards towards the arm. He would witness all that he could.

_An army of demons was spilling forth from a dark purplish portal being supported by thousands of warlocks. Demons in all their varied and twisted forms marched onwards toward a burning medieval city. The city's high walls were useless. The struggle was futile against such an army of demons._

_Infernals and Abyssals rained down from the skies cratering the earth. Doomlords lead their vast army to extinguish all life that remained on this pitiful world. Cries of dread and despair echoed throughout the surrounding area. _

_The earth was watered deep in the blood and corpses of this world's inhabitants. A humanoid creature garbed in the robes of priests kneeled down and wailed out aloud. They were the Raaknar, a proud race of warriors who defied the Burning Legion. But for all their efforts, they were doomed to fall._

_The corpses of his people surrounded the priest._

_The Raaknar prayed to their gods but none answered their prayers. No god would answer their prayer, but a greater evil would. On the brink of death, they saw a vision of a floating city. It was a city that welcomed the dead, the city that created death._

_Their fervent prayers were answered... but the answer was eternal damnation..._

_Within the castle of death and steel, sitting upon its throne was a being clad in ice cold armor, his body burning with the very fires of hell. An ephemeral emerald light shone from the gaps of his crown-helmet. The cacophony of countless souls sang a dirge to glorify the God of War and Death. _

_Upon the battlements made of unbreakable steel, a legion assembled. Above the fortress, a maelstrom of spirits circled to create a stormy cloud of death. The army had no equal. They fear neither death nor destruction. Because they know they will not be dead for long. _

_Upon the throne room colored in the darkness of death and housed in steel stood Death's greatest creations, undead Heroes who stood like pillars unmoving looking down on all who dared enter. _

_In life they were unequaled Champions of their people. They shone brightly as the a sun upon their own worlds as they carved out their legends. However In death, they served as the strongest Blades. They were Reapers who wreaked havoc upon all who opposed their endless march. Once again they would be unleashed to see Death's will done. _

_From the throne, the Undead Ruler stirred as he sensed the battle down below. There was a loud thud as the floating city crashed into land. The Undead Ruler stared down at his greatest creation, the Strongest Sword. For buried beneath this Death Knight known as War was the soul of an ageless warrior. _

_The Lich King hardened his grasp upon his scepter. _

_The greatest weapons were the hardest to control. He weakened the struggling soul and imposed his will. To further shackle down this rabid dog, he gathered the negativity produced from the suffering of souls floating above the city and flooded it into this being._

_A manic grin appeared on the warrior's lips, the glint in its eyes burned with bloodlust. _

_The warrior left the throne to join his army. With a wave of a hand, the undying horde marched from the gaping gates. _

_Undead abominations and walking corpses shambled forward lead by the Reapers who sat astride great undead beasts. The Strongest Sword, Asura, appeared at the forefront of the army. He went atop his mount, a massive undead Dragon. His mere presence twisted reality. As the great Dragon made of bones flew through the sky, the man muttered words that were foreign to the ear but filled with a vast power._

_"_**Εντοπισμός****_._**_" _

_Thousands upon thousands of blades appeared in the sky. They varied from mundane spears to sharp blades of magical cutting steel. The myriad of blades rained down upon the ruined city and towards the demon army. _

_They died by the thousands. Raaknar and Demons, there was no distinction as all fell to this monster. It was Death they faced, a true manifestation of death that embraced all who lived and breathed._

_The undead being riding upon the Dragon leapt off his mount as a mad cackle resounded from his lips. Massive demons, Pit Lords lumbered towards the undead warrior. Fel magic fell on him like a tidal wave but a shield of blades blocked such a futile attempt. Asura let out a Warcry, sound waves manifesting into physical form imbued with twisted magic that pushed back the massive demons and killed the useless rabble._

_The army followed his example and let out unholy roars and screeches._

_The sword of Death leapt onwards striking down foes while cackling with glee. _

_He was an army unto himself. No armor could withstand his blades. No spell or demon could outrun his speed. He was too fast and too strong. Even the massive demons they had relied upon to defend them died at his feet. He was unstoppable juggernaut who none could stand against, even more so because the soul who normally struggled was shackled unable to resist his undead master's orders no matter how much he screamed within._

_He sliced through armor, flesh, and bone while wielding massive swords with ease._

_The warlocks screamed out in surprise when the mad being tossed himself right into the portal towards another world._

_Upon crossing the portal, Asura did not stop as he waded his way across the sea of demons that inhabited the burning plane. The tireless monstrous undead warrior never stopped swinging his blades. Thousands would die at his hands, ripped into pieces by the winds of his strikes. Thousands would die as he let loose the traced blades that appeared from the skies, skewering and pinning those who stood before him to the ground. The slaughter did not stop until all that moved had died._

_The tides of demons that were once like the seas became mountains as corpses were piled high as if reaching the very skies. A green mist was arose from the demons' disintegrating bodies. Atop the highest mountain of corpses stood the Undead Ruler, cloudy mist was gathering in his palms. A hideous maw filled with sharp teeth opened. As if inhaling them, the green mist like fire in hands entered his orifices._

_Screams of despair and horror echoed from nowhere and everywhere._

_As if sensing something the warrior stared at him. He laughed and said-_

The vision was broken as Medivh retracted his hand.

Kael was on his knees gasping for breath from the heavy aura that monster had emitted. He had fought monsters that could shatter mountains with a flick of their fingers but this was the first time he ever felt true fear. A fear so numbing that he could not speak or move. Even his very breath had stopped in front of that monstrosity.

But what was worse was that he knew that monster had been holding back and who that monster once was.

"You do not have the power yet. You hold great potential for good or evil. You possess mysterious knowledge and a strange soul. Furthermore, your progenitor's blood runs strongly within you. You are susceptible to corruption. You cannot deny all of this." Medivh said from above him.

He couldn't deny it. However, what scared him more was finding out there was a fate worse than being a Counter Guardian. To save everyone… the beautiful ideal he once held. If being a Counter Guardian trampled it, then that undead monstrosity utterly perverted and defiled it into an abomination so far from its original goal it made him internally wretch. Even the so called Reapers he saw were nothing but the cruel sick parodies of Heroic Spirits from his original world.

Brave Heroes who had once achieved unimaginable feats over the course of their lives. Slain and then added upon the ranks of undead former Champions of their worlds reborn as Reapers. An unequaled army indeed, but worst of all, the one who defeated them all was the Lich King's Strongest Sword.

Kael felt cold drowning fear deep in the pit of his stomach.

"What can I do?!" Kael screamed in frustration as he felt himself gripped with dread for the future. He did not fear for himself but for those around him. His face was twisted with grief at his powerless hands. Never before did he curse being cut off from his former power as he did now.

The bright sunny day seemed like a lie, as soon dark clouds would appear from the horizon in the near future.

"You must do what you can to grow stronger. It is impossible for you to stop the onslaught of the Burning Legion by yourself. I fear that some things must come to pass for the sake of greater good. Some must be sacrificed to find the path that we need. In time you will have to lead people." Medivh calmly advised.

He knew it was impossible to save everyone but hearing it from someone who had seen the future made him bitter. He had to grow stronger. He had far greater potential. He had to learn to accept this.

"Very well. I will do what I must. I will do what has to be done. These hands of mine are already stained with blood. What are a few more drops to be added to an ocean? I will forge a path to protect what is mine and stop this threat." He stated with self-depreciation but with a resolute will.

"Thank you, Kael'drin. The future has already strayed too far from what I saw. This is the gamble I chose to make. My hopes have been placed upon you. Please help me save this doomed world." Medivh pleaded.

Kael understood the weight of the choice Medivh had taken. Had Medivh chosen not to save him, the future would have been still bleak but visible. He threw away a path where he knew what would happen by changing it too drastically. Medivh could have chosen to do something less risky than changing what he saw entirely. There may have been other plans or choices he could have made less risky to change the future. He felt the burden on him grow heavier.

"You left me no choice old man. How foolish of you to place your hopes on someone like me. Your idiotic choice may have completely doomed this world. But I'm a hypocrite after all. If you are a fool for believing in me, then more so am I for heeding your words. "He chuckled mirthlessly.

"How ironic that when I finally chose to stray away from the battlefield this world is forcing me back into it. What a cursed existence I lead." Kael said aloud allowing his bitterness to show.

"Most people are not born with the choice." Medivh said as he placed his hands on Kael's shoulders. "Remember this Kael'drin, there is always hope as long as we live." The old man smiled slightly at his choice of words.

The man transformed into a raven and flew into the sky. He hated how the old man spoke so cryptically but at least he was able to get a straight answer on his question.

"We will meet again one day when the time is right..." Medivh's last words echoed as he disappeared from sight.

"At least my current situation is the least of my worries right now." Kael said glumly as he occupied the stump that Medivh had vacated. He waited for Sylvanas to catch up to him. It would take some time for her to find him. He sat there with the resignation of a man who had accepted his death and was on his way to the gallows.

"I curse my luck..." He muttered. A blue box appeared in front of him. It was the same blue box that he had seen when he first woke up. He thought it was his imagination, but sadly it wasn't. He could almost imagine Xera's voice in his head as he read the messages.

[Xera has completed the full process of connecting Kael to System Azeroth]

[As part of the agreement, Kael has given full permission to Xera and System Azeroth to manage Essence Absorption and body Visual Metrics. You can now manage your growth. To improve the quality of Visual Metrics, Kael's memory has been scanned to search for most familiar and compatible graphical interface.]

He could get the gist of what she was saying. But what did she mean by Visual Metrics.

[To show visual metric please use command "Show Status" or "Status"]

"Show [Status]?" He asked. Another blue box appeared in front of him over the previous ones.

[**Name**: Kael'drin Hopebringer

Condition: Healthy

**Race**: Mixed Blood Elf

**Title**: [Mutated Soul] [Amber Eyed Hunter] [Harem Protagonist] [Champion of Azeroth]

**Basic Attributes**:

Agility: 50

Intellect: 44

Strength: 28

Stamina: 43

**Class**: None

Level 0

**Active Skills**:

Reinforcement - Lvl Max

Structural Grasp - Lvl Max

**Passive Skills**:

Heroic Archery - Lvl 1

Advanced Dual Wielding - Lvl 8

Runes - Lvl 5

Magecraft - Lvl 4

Poison Mastery - Lvl 4

Eye of the Mind - Lvl 7

Hawk Eye - Lvl Max

**Unique Skills**:

Weaponry Creation(?)

S.A.I.S./ Appraisal

Efficient Essence Absorption

**Racial Trait**:

Blessed of Elune

Quickness

Elusiveness

Arcane Affinity ]

He recognized what it was from partial memories he could gather from his reiterations that reached the Throne of Heroes. It was similar to a game character page. He read through the box reading the contents.

"Xera?" He asked, irritation in his voice. "What's the use of the titles?" It was the first thing he noted.

[System Azeroth and Xera which will now be called System Xera has looked through records of Kael's past actions and have agreed to provide bonuses to certain actions thus the titles were given. Through the analysis of Database System Azeroth, certain events and phenomenon occurring are based on predetermined patterns-]

"Please give me the short version." Kael asked as he cut off Xera, his patience running thin.

[Titles are the blessings of the world on every action you take. An example is title "Guardian of Azeroth", System Xera will be assisting you in your endeavor to protect Azeroth. As such we will provide you with the means to gather information on any relevant to target.

Thus the skill Appraisal has been added. Furthermore, any actions you take towards protecting the planet will have things slightly influenced to provide better results.]

"Okay, I'm not sure if I'm right but what you're saying is if I have the title like 'Ice Mage', I first need to be able to use ice element magic and have enough skill with it for the system or the world to recognize my ability and provide me the title." He stated slowly trying get a firm grasp on the workings of what he knew and while compare it to his current situation.

[Affirmative]

"And if I have the title 'Ice Mage', the planet or the world will slightly influence it to make my ice spells stronger. Is that correct?" He continued.

[Affirmative]

"So when I was given the title Harem Protagonist… does that mean that there is a larger chance of me encountering multiple women and having a relationship with them?" His voice was almost pleading to be wrong.

[Affirmative. Would you like me to provide you more information about said title?]

He dreaded the answer he would find but Kael was not a coward. He would charge onwards. There had to be a way to remove that title if only he had more information on it.

[Harem Protagonist – Kael'drin Hopebringer has greater chances of encounters with compatible members of preferred gender. Also title bestows higher chance of multiple mates to tolerate each other allowing polygamy.]

Kael sat there in a daze for what seemed to feel like hours. He didn't know how to feel about this but he was sure it was going to be very troublesome to say the least.

"But what's with the level? Why am I level 0?"

[System Xera has found that you did not previously have a proper connection to the world. Thus your growth has been exceedingly slow because of it. Thus it is abnormal for Kael to have grown so much despite possessing such a condition. Levels are a normal indication of strength. Rarely are there anomalies like you whose basic attributes do not match their level.]

"So you mean that I was previously an alien of this world? And how does level normally indicate strength?" He asked confused.

[To begin with, all the beings in the world have what we call Essence or Records. Even the aliens that you call are normally assessed by level. If a being kills another, some of the dead beings Essence are absorbed by their killer. This makes the killer stronger and improves their powers and physical abilities. The stronger the enemy you defeat the greater the essence you can absorb from them.

Kael is an anomaly because he was somehow able to improve his attributes and abilities without taking another being's Essence. As Xera has stated earlier we have taken over your Essence absorption. From now on you should be able to absorb Essences normally. But as part of our assistance, we will improve your absorption efficiency to Essences. To make it simpler, Kael will have an easier time increasing his level.]

'_So it was something similar to... what did they call it… a permanent exp boost._

That also helped explained some things, like why he would become so powerful as an Undead. When he died, this essence absorption may have been fixed on his unholy resurrection along with his connection to his Reality Marble. He looked through the blue window once more; he understood what the attributes meant more or less. However he looked at his skills curiously, he needed to understand all of it to make the most out of what he had.

[**Unique Skills**:

Weaponry Creation(?) - Unable to quantify the abilities full effects.

S.A.I.S./Appraisal - SAIS is an acronym for System Azeroth Information Search or skill name Appraisal. This ability is provided along with the title 'Guardian of Azeroth'. Through the System, you are able to gather information about a target from System records. Some information may be restricted due to the target's larger Essence quantity or lack of it.

Efficient Essence Absorption - Increases the efficiency of essence absorption.

**Racial Traits**:

Blessed of Elune - You are favored by the Goddess Elune. The blessing Increases your haste during the night. It also increases your ability to pinpoint your enemy's weakness during the day.

Quickness - Increases your natural speed and reflexes.

Elusiveness - Reduces your presence while you are hidden.

Arcane Affinity - Increases your affinity for arcane manipulation and magic. This ability also provides you with affinity to do Enchanting.]

He read box with the basic description of the abilities he currently possessed. It was quite handy and grateful that he didn't need to ask Xera about it. Going back to his 'Titles' he looked over them again trying to pull out all the details of the benefits they bestowed. It might provide insight on what he could further do or method to train himself in.

[**Titles**:

Mutated Soul - Your soul has a strange quality to it. From previous data, your soul was interpreted to be distorted before it was attempted to be fixed during your birth. Some qualities from the distortion are still retained. It also increases your affinity for creation and destruction. Your soul can further evolve with further stimulation.

Amber Eyed Hunter - A title given by other people as recognition of Kael'drin Hopebringer's ability, it provides increased gain in fame while adventuring. Has a high chance of changing as your fame increases.

Harem Protagonist – Kael'drin Hopebringer has greater chances of encounters with compatible members of preferred gender. Also title bestows higher chance of multiple mates to tolerate each other allowing polygamy.

Champion of Azeroth - A title given by the System to Kael'drin Hopebringer that provides the two skills Observation and Efficient Essence Absorption. Any action towards protecting the world is slightly influenced to have an increase in chance of success.

But what did they mean by a class? Soon after he thought it, small internal ding popped in his head notifying him. It really was convenient to have a sentient something living in your mind apparently. He clicked on the notification and another interface opened up to provide the information.

[A class is equal to magical beast's ranks. It is the path of strength for all sentient beings, though there are some exceptions. An example would be recorded being Sylvanas Windrunner having a special class and title of Ranger General. Sylvanas has taken the specialist path of a ranger. She has gained all abilities pertaining to the standard ranger class along with commanding abilities of a commander class.

A class is the reflection of path you will follow. Please choose your class wisely as you cannot turn back to time to follow another path. Available classes will be shown once you've reached Level 10.]

He began to mull over what he just learned. A plan began to form as he proceeded to ask for more information from Xera. However, he was so lost in thought from his musings that he had failed to notice when someone had approached him from behind.

-**II**-

Sylvanas stared at the form of his friend sitting in the middle of a clearing. He should have noticed her by now. He was usually able to notice most of everything in his surroundings due to Kael's sharp senses. But maybe he was still affected by the magic he had used a few days ago.

Her light footsteps made no traces as she approached her prey. Just as she was right behind him, she had the sudden urge to embrace him. She gave in… her arms wrapping around his body to engulf him in her embrace.

"Huh?"

She could hear Kael's confused cry but ignored it. She did not want to let him go. Kael was going to be exiled. She wanted to shout out in frustration and anger at the whole situation. She had the power to keep him safe but it was not enough. She could not overturn the King's decision.

The King's judgment was too heavy, some people would have preferred death over exile. A thousand years of exile was already a excessively long time even by a high elf's standard. A fair amount even died before then due to accident, murder, or disease.

If only she didn't have to carry the burden of being the Head of House Windrunner, she would have gladly followed him into exile to be with him.

She was sorely tempted, but she knew Kael would not be happy if she did that. She also had her younger brother to look after as well.

She had her duty both to her family and to her nation. It drove her mad, she wanted to curse the Gods for the circumstances of her birth. Was it not enough that her parents were taken from her? Was it not enough that she lost her older sister?

Tears ran down her cheeks. She did not want to let him go.

"Syl?..." She heard Kael mutter his nickname for her. She secretly loved it when he called her that. It sent pleasurable shivers running down her spine.

He tried to look at her but she strengthened her hold on him.

She did not want him to see her tears, her weakness.

"Are you alright?" She lost the strength in her arms when Kael touched her hand. He turned around to face Sylvanas.

He was taller by a thumb than her now, she idly noted. Her hands roamed Kael's body. He was well built and lean, the results of his training clearly showing. His gentle eyes and delicate facial features belied his impressive combat potential.

Without even thinking about it she caught Kael's lips in a kiss. Her tongue invaded his mouth. There was a brief resistance but moments later, she could feel Kael reciprocating back. His hands went around her slender waist to hold her closer. She could feel her arousal growing with each passing second. She moved her hands wrapping them around his neck as she hungrily savored his taste.

Though she overheard some rangers calling her a prude behind her back, she was not without knowledge when it came to sex.

She finally broke the kiss when she felt like she could no longer hold her breath. A trail of saliva was linked between their lips.

"Syl... what are you doing?" Kael asked hesitantly.

She ignored his inquiry instead opting to remove her cloak and unclasp her armor. Her chest was released from their confines. Though not as big as Anadriel's she was still sufficiently large.

"What does it seem like?" She asked as she slowly stripped off her lower armor while making a show off it.

The passionate kiss and currently stripping Sylvanas was an incredibly distracting sight to say the least. High Elves in general were a beautiful race, possessing a physically appealing appearance, but even by High Elven standards Sylvanas Windrunner was a rare beauty. Female models from his previous world would have bitten their nails in envy to have her looks and figure. Rumors had said that even Lords from countless noble houses had attempted to seek her hand yet all were turned away for some reason. In all honesty the only other woman he saw in his current life so far that could rival Sylvanas in looks was Anadriel. A woman like that was currently seducing him and driving his raging hormones crazy, but still he had to know.

"Syl, I'm serious. Tell me what's bothering you. "Kael struggled to keep his mind focused.

She paused then dragged him to where she had spread her cloak. "You are going to be exiled Kael. In a week's time, you will be forced to leave Quel'thalas. I don't want to regret having the chance but not doing something before you leave."

With those words, she continued kissing him. Her hands roaming over his body while stripping him of his clothes. She could see uncertainty on Kael's face his expression a mixture of desire and hesitation. She ignored it in favor of claiming her man while she had the time and opportunity. She did not want to lose to that woman Anadriel and those massive _cow-tits_.

Her hands hastily took off Kael's shirt. She could feel his hardened member at her belly pressing against her. Kael did not resist when she took off his pants. His erect dick hit her in the face as she did so. It stood tall and proud as it pointed towards the sky.

Her soft hands gently wrapped around his thick shaft. She heard Kael let out a small adorable cry from the contact.

For Sylvanas It was not her first time seeing one. However, it was her first time seeing one that was fully erect and this big. Taking in the sight she didn't even know if it would fit in her, yet her legs quivered in anticipation at the thought of it. She gave the tip of its head an experimental kiss while looking up at Kael's face.

She felt immediate satisfaction as she saw his face twisted in pleasure. The musk of a man invaded her nostrils as she drew near his dick and put the tip into her mouth.

"Slurp." She heard her mouth making the sound as she worked around his length and thickness inside her oral cavity. She twirled her tongue around his shaft, gently licking it, while savoring the taste of it. Slowly she brought it out and dragged her tongue along the head. She tried to do the same to the root, as her lips left his balls covered in her saliva. Finally she worked herself up for it and in one stride forced herself to take him all in with one movement. Slow at first she repeated this action until she picked up the pace and began earnestly deep throating him.

She let her arms wrap around Kael's waist not letting go as he bucked and jerked around from the pleasure.

Every now and then she would look up to his face with upturned eyes to see how he was doing taking personal delight in his reactions.

"Oh gods..." Kael muttered, his hands grabbed her head to hold her still. She broke off from working on his member releasing it with a loud 'pop' as her tongue focused on the tip of his shaft making Kael buckle where he stood. The cold air he felt and lull in Sylvannas actions hit Kael full force as his member twitched violently bringing him ever closer to the edge. Once again she slowly took him deeper into her throat. She pulled the forehead back with her tongue and sucked on the tip.

Her inexperience showed however when she accidentally felt her teeth touch Kael' hardened dick and he let out a low cry of pain. She experimented with what she knew and heard in passing from others.

She took her time with it, her hand reaching down between her legs and started playing with herself. A digit was slowly entering her wet snatch as her hands sped up to a furious pace to quench the burning desire she was feeling.

"Syl... were outside...!" She heard him shout but ignored him due to her lack of concern and lust.

The knowledge that there was a chance someone could turn up any second now and stumble into scene having sex only made her wetter.

"You don't have to hold back. I know you have the ability to set up a mysterious magic field somehow. Something like that will keep people away. Or... maybe you want someone to watch?" She said seductively, or what she thought was enough to excite him.

She heard Kael groan once more. The desire in his eyes told it all and she grinned. She pushed him down onto the ground and mounted him. Her voluptuous body and round firm ass prominently displayed. A faint scent was already wafting around them and into their noses.

"What... are you..."

She disregarded Kael's words. He saw his eyes drop down to her flooded nether regions. With slow movements, she placed her lower lips upon his rod. With a gasp, her most intimate place was pierced. She had long since lost her hymen due to her training as a ranger so there was no blood.

The earlier stimulation added with the sweet tightness he felt as Kael's penis was guided deep into her vagina. He couldn't help but blow his load bursting out semen in large quantities, the excess flowing outside.

At the same time earlier ministrations when she had played with herself and the feeling of hot a flood of semen into her made her temporarily unconscious with pleasure. She was taken back to reality when the softening rod suddenly regained its hardness. As Kael grabbed her hips and began to start thrusting upward surprising Sylvanas who couldn't help but gasp from the shock and making her bounce.

While Sylvanas was still in a stupor a steady rhythm soon developed as she bucked and shook her hips along Kael's long thick member. Sylvanna's large breasts hypnotically moving with every bounce she did upon her lover. The actions that took place were an incredibly erotic sight that near all the men of Quel'Thalas would pay dearly to see and even more to experience. The beautiful female High Elf worked herself into fervor as she repeatedly impaled herself upon his huge dick till her senses became overwhelmed with pleasure releasing a mighty climax and collapsing a top of him. However Kael'drin Hopebringer wasn't done with this lovely creature just yet.

Kael lifted her off himself and glared down at her.

"Lie down, now it's my turn to be on top." She heard him say with a commanding voice. A shiver of pleasure ran down her spine as she complied and laid herself on their makeshift bed. It wasn't too hard on the ground with grass covering most of the clearing.

"Kael?" She looked down at him breathlessly in confusion as he bent down and spread her legs. She was already wet down there where there juices mixed. Kael's face grimaced a little, but the light of determination didn't die. She realized what he was about to do when she saw the evil grin on his face. "Wait. That place is-" She bit down on her teeth to stop the scream that threatened to came out as she arched her back.

Her pussy lips were spread open by Kael's fingers and his tongue began skillfully playing with her clit. Her body gave another thrash when two fingers went inside and played with her insides. For the second time climaxed in barely any time at all with Kael's ministration. A cry loud escaped from her lips as she came the pleasure washing over her body yet again.

"Now were even... I will ravish you so and make sure you'll regret it." She heard Kael tenderly whisper into her ear as he drew close to kiss her on the lips. His words sending a torrent pleasurable shivers down her spine. As their lips and tongues exchanged she could taste herself from Kael's tongue.

"Yes... please... I need it inside." She whispered with needy desire.

Kael got off her and held her hips with one hand while the other directed his dick towards her entrance. The tip smoothly entered followed by his whole dick.

Her face was twisted in shock.

"Just relax... I'll take care of it."

Kael waited for her to adjust to his girth. His hands went up to her breasts to play with her erect nipples. Her sizable bust easily fit into his palms and then some. Kael bent down to lick her teats. She felt another orgasm come with Kael expertly playing with her nipples.

"Fuuucckk..."

How was he so good at this? The question was pushed to the back of her mind when Kael started moving his hips in earnest.

Kael flicked and rolled his tongue on her nipples and alternated in raining kisses on her lips and neck. After she adjusted to his rhythm he pushed her legs up to her shoulders as he proceeded to deeply pummeled her in a downward angle increasing the depth of the penetration.

"More… ohh!….Do me more...ah!... I'm yours ...Kael..." She said breathlessly amidst moans of pleasure.

Their grunts and groans of passion were made aloud in the open wilderness of the woods. Sylvanas could feel another eruption of pleasure reach her yet again.

"Aaaaaahhh!" She tried not to scream but the pleasure was too much for her and her cries became even louder. Her legs clamped onto his hips making him unable to escape as he continued to speed up his movement. Her luscious body shaking back and forth from the strength of his thrusts as waves of pleasure continued to flood her. Kael could feel Sylvanas tighten around him as her breathing quickened and back began to arch.

"Don't- I'm nearly there." She ignored his protests and refused to let him go. Shortly after she clamped down on him hard, she felt hot cum flowing into her filling her womb with a searing pleasant heat. After roughly a minute the sensation of being filled passed. Basking in the afterglow her mind was brought out from her orgasm when she felt Kael move to pull his dick out and couldn't help but pout.

"No... Please let me stay... like this for a while." She saw Kael hesitate before nodding. They both lay down next to each other, their faces touching as Kael's hand reached behind him to take his own cloak and drape it over their naked forms. His hand moved under her head to make a pillow for her to rest on. For a few minutes they cuddled mere enjoying the others presence and warmth. However it couldn't last as much as both of them may have wanted it to. The tender silence was eventually broken.

"Syl..." Kael whispered. "Tell me what happened. Why am I being exiled?"

She stared at his amber colored eyes, her hand gently caressing his cheek. The sound of nature filled their ears as a gentle breeze blew across the area. The warm sun in the sky shone down on them through the gaps in the leaves as Sylvanas began to speak.

"When we found you, we felt something unnatural around the area. Magical energy mixed with arcane and fel magic. There was even an unknown energy also mixed with it. You were lying on the ground with various blades sticking out of your body.

"The mage who was with us assumed the worst and nearly killed you, he said the area was saturated by magic. But what he found most abundant was the mixed magical energy. He thought you had performed a dark ritual using the bodies that we found with you and failed. For the crimes of using fel magic, the King has sentenced you to exile. You know that fel magic is forbidden but why did you use it?" She asked. She could feel the tears gathering in her eyes as she spoke.

Kael was silent for a few seconds taking what she said in and gathering his thoughts before explaining what had happened.

"I found Ana lying in a pool of blood with a dagger on her chest." He said as she glared at him when he mentioned that woman's name. But Sylvanas said nothing else allowing him to continue on with his story.

"She nearly died, her breath had already stopped so I wasn't sure if using a potion could have healed her. She had also lost too much blood at that point as well. I was desperate… I used a magic that I shouldn't have but… I couldn't think of anything else." Hearing him finish she could discern the truth in his words. It also matched what they had found out. Yet she couldn't help but feel like he was still holding back some information.

In the first place where had he gotten such a spell? A person who had completely stopped breathing was considered dead and unsavable but Kael was still able to heal that woman. However Sylvanas didn't care, she was neither a mage nor did she have the inclination to inquire any further. Even if she was unhappy with the ruling over Kael's case and assumptions on his character, at the very least she was glad she wasn't wrong about the man she fell in love with.

Her thoughts were interrupted when she felt Kael harden once more within her. She stared at Kael unabashedly. Her lust was ignited once more. She wanted more. She wanted to make love to him so much that when he left, he would never forget her. That she would always be in his heart like he was in hers.

She clenched on Kael's hardened rod, a smile on her face. She nimbly mounted Kael again after getting her second wind. Noting for the first time how strangely beautiful he looked. Had he always looked this androgynous?

"I want more... more of you..." She whispered as she began to move, her large twin hills jutting out and jiggling with every thrust.

They would continue on until Sylvanas felt bloated with his semen. She could not count how many times she came. She became ever bolder and more passionate as the love making continued with semen dripping between her legs into the ground. Kael was an incredibly gifted lover and she enjoyed herself immensely as she kept going determined to milk him dry only stopping when she expended all her energy. Afterwards Sylvanas lay in Kael's embrace, the smell of sex thick in the air.

She enjoyed the silence between them as she slept in his arms. She burrowed herself further into his embrace. Just this time, and only in front of him she wanted to be a woman. She wanted to be weak and protected. Sleep finally claimed her as the sleepless nights she had spent worrying had finally caught up with her.

Her last vision was of Kael's contemplating face. A small smile graced her lips and a warm darkness took her.

-**III**-

Kael had quietly cleaned them both up while waiting for Sylvanas to wake up. He looked down on her face. He traced a hand through her tender cheeks across to her delicate jaw. How many men could claim they had slept with women as beautiful as the one in his arms?

Sylvanas truly reminded her of Rider in a way. She had a different beauty to that of Ana. If Anadriel was like a delicate seductive beauty that exuded a gentle charm, Sylvanas was a beauty whose charm lay in her cold outward exterior but warm and soft interior.

He was lucky no people were nearby and he had been able to set an isolation rune unnoticed before he took action earlier. Last thing he needed was an audience to their zealous passionate embrace in the woods. He found his discarded clothes from earlier and had already put them on. He took a seat beside the sleeping Sylvanas as he gently stared at her sleeping form.

The warm rays of a setting sun was on the horizon. The forest looked like a sea of gold with the sunset's light shining on the decaying leaves of autumn. The smell of spring still pervaded the air but signs of fall were visible.

He was deep in thought when a blue box appeared.

[Xera congratulates Kael on losing his virginity. I have recorded a copy of your activities for future use.]

He swatted at the blue box annoyed but it didn't disappear.

He was sentenced to exile. The thought still hadn't fully sunk in with him yet. He was going to be sent away from those he wanted to protect. He gripped his head and groaned. The sentence was from the King. There would likely be consequences if he broke it. But why give him a week and not kick him out immediately? Kael's thoughts turned towards a more pressing matter.

'_What am I going to do?_'

He had to think positively on what can be done.

He could still grow stronger, considering what the future held he had to get stronger. Yes, technically speaking it would be better if he was outside of Quel'thalas. If he could defeat stronger enemies, he could become stronger and further refine his skills. That line of thought would normally have never entered his mind as he was before. The question was where he was going to go?

He did not know when the Burning Legion would strike. He did not even know where. With the size of the continent, it would probably take him months or years to go around the entire land of Lordaeron. According to his dwarf friend, Ragnarn, it took him about two years to reach Silvermoon. But it had only taken him that long because he stayed a while at every village he passed by.

He mulled on his options. But the only thoughts that surfaced were about the people he would leave behind. Coria would probably be worried, so would Ana. He also had a few friends around the area like Ragnarn. He knew his negativity and pessimism was coming out. It was not like something bad would happen to them just because he wasn't there.

He tried to think back on what he had been doing before Sylvanas found him. Right… analyzing his skills.

'_But how does it work?_' He thought.

"Appraisal?" He said. Nothing happened. A prompt appeared most likely courtesy of Xera.

[Please use the skill on a target object.]

The blue box stated, he stared at his hand and tried again to focus his attention on his own body.

"Appraise."

Soon after he spoke he saw a copy of his status appear. He tried the appraisal again on a nearby rock.

[Rock - a normal rock]

The result was unexpectedly dull and he deadpanned at the answer. He tried it again this time focusing on Sylvanas who was still asleep.

"Appraise"

[Sylvanas Windrunner

Class: Ranger General

Level 49

Titles: Ice-cold General, Little Lady, Head of House Windrunner

Race: High Elf

Description:

Daughter of Melindil and Lireesa Windrunner, she was raised as a warrior according to the standards of their House. She took over as Head of House Windrunner when both of her parents died and her older sister went missing. Her only surviving close relatives are her younger Sister Vereesa...]

Kael stopped reading any further. He didn't want to know about things Sylvanas didn't tell him about. If she told him about these before, then he could accept it. Without it, it felt like he was violating her being when he was looking at her history like this.

The blue box faded away.

"Xera. Why was there fel and arcane energy during that time I nearly died?" He asked suspiciously.

[Xera has detected a mixture of multiple magic energies within your body. This was most likely a result of your soul being exposed to massive amounts of _Light _and _Void_. Xera has no clue how such a thing came to be. But Xera is sure that your soul was able to adapt to these forces of nature enabling you to use most of the known forms of energy or magic.

The energy known as _fel _is a result of destruction, a primal force of chaos. Lesser minds have perceived _fel _as evil but it is not so. It is merely another form of _arcane_ energy.]

He heard Sylvanas stir next to him thus interrupting his discussion with Xera. Her eyes were open and her cheeks were glowing red.

"Are you alright?" He asked worriedly. Honestly regretting how little control of himself he had over what had happened earlier. Raging hormones and Sylvana's aggressive seduction had snapped at what little remained of his sane mind. He gave in to his lust and needs accepting her open invitation.

"I'm fine." She said with a small smile. "How long was I asleep?" She asked.

"You've been out of it since this morning. It's nearly noon now. We better get you home. Lirath will no doubt be worried about you." Kael answered.

He looked away from her beautiful naked form as he waited for Sylvanas to get dressed. He felt a twitch in his pants but quickly quashed it while soon turning red from embarrassment. Sylvanas was momentarily shocked seeing such a reaction in Kael but was pleased by it giving a sultry smile in response as she got dressed. He felt a hand on his shoulders as Sylvanas leaned on him for support.

"Are you alright?" He asked again.

"Mmmhh, I'm fine." She insisted. However she let out a yelp of surprise when Kael brought his hand to her legs, lifting her up in a princess carry. "Put me down Kael!" She demanded with a beet red face as her heart wildly beat in her chest.

"Let me carry you home. I don't think you're able to walk properly at the moment." He said in an apologetic tone.

"Whose fault was it? You thick dumb idiot." She glared at him.

Kael regretted nothing. It was not his fault, he thought in excuse for he knew better than to say that out loud.

They made their way back as he carried her to a section of the walls of Silvermoon that was least guarded. He observed the perimeter and made a dash for it when he was sure it was clear. There were still people out at this time of day after all. To make sure they didn't get notice, he decided to stay on the rooftops. No one usually looks up unless they have a reason to do so and besides he wanted to protect Sylvanas reputation.

They made it to the Windrunner Spire in record time. He slowly let her down to the ground when they reached the gates. For a moment Sylvanas did hesitate a little before reluctantly letting go of his neck and standing up on her own. She walked towards the gates, before noticing he wasn't following after her. She looked back and stared at him for not reading the mood.

"What?" He asked.

"You're still a criminal under the law. It would be better if you sleep here tonight. I can make a report to the garrison that I was taking care of you. They won't have any qualms about it." She said darkly.

The realization hit him. He was a fugitive. He wasn't supposed to have any sort of freedom right now. It was even a wonder that they had not locked him up yet. Most likely this was probably due to Sylvanas. Besides he was pretty sure she didn't have any ulterior motives and was just doing her best to look out for him.

The next day, Kael woke up with a sore body and bloodshot eyes. A part of Kael regretted stepping inside that gate, while another part of him was overjoyed.

He was currently in Sylvanas' room at the moment, clothes were strewn about on the carpeted floor. He weakly tried to crawl himself out of the bed but an iron grip soon stopped him. He looked towards the other side of the bed to see Sylvanas asleep with her hand on his arm.

The room was dark with thick curtains drawn over the windows.

He carefully pried her fingers off him making sure she was still asleep. He didn't have any energy left after what they'd done all night.

He looked throughout the room only to find his clothes were missing. He could not just leave going out naked, times like this really made him miss projection ability. He scanned through the room to find any alternative source of clothing he could wear. It was a good thing he'd done that, because not a second later, the door opened. He was able to grab a spare blanket on the bed and drape it over his lower body.

One of the servants in the house entered. She was holding a basket of clothes, some of which he recognized as his own. So this person was the culprit.

"Eeeek!" The maid let out a surprised shout when she saw him. He was quick to approach her and cover her mouth. He spoke in a low voice careful not to wake the voracious tigress on the bed. Sweat flowed down his neck as he looked back to check if she stirred. He let out a sigh of relief when he found she didn't wake.

"Please keep your voice down. Now, I'm going to take my hand so don't make any sound." The maid nodded vigorously while looking up and down at his body.

"How long were we asleep?" He asked.

"It's nearly lunch Sir." She answered, her eyes shamelessly roaming over his body. Kael felt incredibly conscious from the woman's stares.

"Can you please leave the room? I need to get changed." He whispered.

The maid nodded again, her eyes never leaving his form a dusting of red visible on her cheeks. He waited until the maid went out of the room, and a few seconds more on the off chance she forgot something. He quickly put on his clothes before any other interruption arrived.

He was tired. His mind was clear but his body felt like it needed a rest. He was proud of his stamina but damn. Sylvanas nearly outlasted him proving to be nearly insatiable. He still had his pride as a man and was able to come out on top in the end though.

If he was to be exiled and his sentence was too carried out in less than a week from now, he needed to prepare his equipment. He needed gather information and supplies. More than that however, he also had to convince Sylvanas to let him talk with Anadriel.

Ana was probably worried sick when he had run off like that. He hardened his resolve as he approached Sylvanas. He just hoped she was not in the mood yet, he still had yet to recover from last night.

Unfortunately it seemed his luck failed him, he didn't manage to leave that room until five hours later.

-**IV**-

The week had passed by too quickly. Making the best use of his time outside of Sylvanas bedroom, he had been busy asking for advice from Ragnarn. The Dwarf was the only other person he knew who had traveled far from Quel'thalas with experience of other lands.

Ragnarn had provided him with advice such as what to bring on a journey south, what he needed to beware of and lastly, his friend gave him a medallion with a hammer engraved on it. He told him to use it if he ever ended up in Ironforge.

He was also surprised when he found the Wandering Inn present. The disappearing inn rarely appeared and it was not like it to appear so soon again. For once his luck was good, he had been able to converse with Erin and told her about his plight. The woman gave him a strange piece of rock with a spiral engraved on it. When he asked her about it, she just smiled mischievously and told him it was a gift.

He was also able to get a scroll as proof of achievement from the Adventurer Guild in case he ended up somewhere and he needed something to confirm his identity. Some places didn't let strangers into their town, even having guards stationed to keep unidentified strangers out. Which he thought really wasn't all that surprising to be honest.

He had also bid farewell to his little student, Lirath. The boy had gifted him with a book called _Tales of Dungeons and Monsters_. His former student had shyly told him that he would grow as strong and skilled as him someday. He had approved of the boy's ambition if only he found someone else to idolize. The boy admired him but he did not want the boy picking up any of his habits or characteristics.

Then he had met with Coria. She had bawled her eyes out as soon as she saw him. She had already known about his situation so he didn't have much to explain. Coria had also told him that she would probably leave the orphanage in a few more months to go back to Dalaran. Finally she made him promise to go visit her if he somehow ended up that area.

During his searching he had not been able to find Anadriel though. He had visited the guild multiple times but she had not been there. He inquired about her with the other guild receptionists but he was only given a sad smile and was told to take care of her. That had sent warning bells ringing out in his head. He couldn't help but have a very bad feeling about it and sought her out immediately. He had tried visiting her at home but she was not there on the times he visited. To make things worse most of her things were missing.

Lastly, there was his self-appointed guard, Sylvanas Windrunner. At every opportunity that they were alone, the woman had made love to him. She said it was too make sure he didn't forget her, but a part of him felt she may have enjoyed things just a bit too much. Sylvanas also told him she would be willing to 'tolerate' other women as long as he remembered she was the first. That had both greatly shocked and alarmed him. He had been expecting Sylvanas to tell him he trusted him not to cheat, not this blessing to sleep with others. Maybe it was some kind of reverse psychology tactic?

He tried to ask further about it but she slapped him hard in the face and called him an idiot. After that, they had sex that whole night that left him both drained and dead tired on the day he was to made to depart his exile coming into effect.

Sylvanas and a few members of her Rangers were waiting at the gates as he made his last goodbye to his friends.

Kael wore a new dark red cloak that could cover most of his body. He was wearing black leather armor beneath it along with brown trousers. He wore a scarf around his neck out of habit from his previous life.

A new bow was slung on his shoulder coated in a black almost metallic sheen.

A pair of blades was hanging at his waist. Just the visible hilt was enough to show how exquisitely made they were. He had imbued it with the results of his research on runes to make it similar to Kanshou and Byakuya, the Twin Married Blades.

On his back was a bulging pack full of camping equipment, spare clothes , a few books, and an assortment other things he thought he may need. He wore his black leather armor which had to be resized due to his sudden growth spurt. The armor was designed in mind to be usable for a few years and to be easily repairable.

"You need to take care of yourself, okay? Remember; don't eat things that you find on the ground." Coria admonished the youth as she talked but her concern was evident by the tone of her voice.

Kael had to keep himself from rolling his eyes lest he suffer another lecture.

"I know." He waited for Coria to finish before he spoke up. "Goodbye Coria, and please take care of yourself." He said as he resisted the urge to pat her head. A crowd of children were lined up behind her. They had said their goodbyes at the orphanage but some of them still woke up early this morning to see him off.

"Goodbye Kael!" A child shouted.

"Just you wait! I'll be like you someday!" Another child declared in confidence. He remembered this kid being one of those who liked to play with wooden swords.

"Please take care." Said another.

"Uwaahh! We won't get to taste your cooking anymore!" A fourth child said as he cried.

From there on, the other children seemed to realize the same thing and they immediately leapt forth clinging to him like leeches while crying. He had to ask a far too amused Coria for assistance to get them all off of him.

However Anadriel was still not around, he had hoped she would show up or find her before he left. He was about to turn around when he caught a glimpse of honey colored hair shining under the light of the sun. He smiled and walked over to a figure in the distance. They met halfway on the road.

"Are you alright Ana? I've been asking around for you but everyone at the guild didn't seem to know where you'd gone to. I went to visit you at home but it looked like you had moved out. What happened?" He asked with concern.

Anadriel hesitantly approached and reached out to hug him. He stiffened a little when he felt her abundantly large soft breasts press into his chest.

"I don't want you to go..." She said in a small voice.

Kael could not take the gazes being directed at them and moved Ana to the side of the road. He ignored the looks of envy that some men were sending their way.

"I'm sorry Ana, I don't really have a choice." He said bitterly.

"W-why do you have to go away." Her voice hitched as she spoke and her eyes were on the verge of tears.

"It's not like I'd be gone forever-" He lamely tried to sooth her but was cut short with Ana's sharp glare.

"Kael, a thousand years is not forever but it is a long time, you will be potentially away for the rest of your life." Anadriel replied with tears flowing down her eyes. "Please take me with you..." Anadriel pleaded.

Kael could do nothing but stay silent, he couldn't say it. He could not allow Anadriel to go with him because it meant putting her in danger. He was not sure what kind of encounters he was going to be put through on his journey but he was sure that it would be safer for Anadriel to stay in Silvermoon than with him. His throat croaked as he tried to find the right words to say no. She could see the sadness on Anadriel's face as she quickly understood his expression.

He could not take it anymore and he buried her face in his chest. He didn't want to see his friend cry like this because of him. His desire to keep her safe was greater than his urge to wipe away her sadness.

"I can't Ana, I'm not sure I'll be able to keep you safe." He said while feeling Anadriel's tears flowing down his neck. He stood there and comforted her but he knew he had to go. Anadriel's grip on his clothes tightened when he tried to separate from her. "Ana?..." He asked.

The elven beauty finally let go and looked at him in the eyes. He could see her gaze hardening as if she had come to a resolution at what she had to do.

"If I become strong enough, will you allow me to stay with you?" She asked.

Kael tilted his head in confusion but could not bring himself to say no. He merely nodded unable to form any coherent words.

Ana hastily wipe her tears away and smiled at him.

"That's a promise Kael." She said and kissed him quickly on the lips.

He was too stunned to react. The only thing he saw was Anadriel's retreating form when he came back to his senses. He sighed; another reason why he had to become stronger had just appeared.

He turned back and made his way to the gates.

The rangers, in particular the males, were getting impatient.

He said one last farewell to everyone before walking towards the open gates of Silvermoon. He did not turn back this time, instead he strengthened his determination. He hoped he could return here someday. But first, he had to acquire enough power to do so and avert that terrible future.

"Are you ready?" Sylvanas asked him.

"Yes." He answered. There was no turning back.

-**V**-

"Are you sure about your decision, Ana?" Nesarion asked with concern.

"Yes, I'm sure about this uncle Nesa. I want to become stronger, as I am now I would only be a hindrance to him." Anadriel replied.

Nesarion stared at Anadriel for a moment. She was still young by High Elven standards, but he could not deny her resolve. If that was her decision then he could do everything he could to support it. At least she didn't do something stupid like following that boy. Despite being grateful to the lad for what he did, even personally liking him, this and that were two different things.

"You were not able to say goodbye to your friend?" Nesarion asked.

"It doesn't matter does it? I'm sure we'll meet again someday. If that day comes, I'll be able to stay by his side." Anadriel said with a smile.

"Very well, I'll prepare what you need. I still have the letter from Dalaran, I'm sure they'd be happy to accept you. I never thought you would take back the heritage you willingly threw away..." Nesarion said.

"I'm sorry, uncle." Anadriel tried to apologize.

"No, I'm happy you've decided on your own path. But I'm not happy you're doing for some stupid reason such as love." Nesarion replied genuinely annoyed as he sighed.

"It's not stupid! Stupid uncle. You never got to ask Mel'narea out after all these years. You don't know anything! That's why shut up stupid uncle!" She said as she hurled a tirade of insults at him, her hands balled into fists.

He laughed good naturedly feeling happy for the girl as she looked more lively.

"I'm going to my room to prepare my luggage." The girl said as she ran out of the room.

She had motivation, and she was his only remaining relative left. The Tidebreaker House lineage would probably end with him. He had thoughts whether he would let Ana take over as his heir but the thought were quashed as soon as it appeared.

Anadriel's father had been a distant relative of the current ruler. That was what her father had, lineage and ambition. Fortunately, that ambition ended prematurely with his death. He didn't even know why his sister had married that man or saw in him. Ana had talent with magic, but that had been wasted by her father greedy father. The man had wanted connections with other noble lineages and groomed Ana to be nothing but a bride, a piece to be traded for power. Ana had lost the motivation since then to practice magic despite her considerable potential.

Nesarion watched the annoyed young woman leave the room. The smile on his turned into a frown tinged with concern. Anadriel had not visibly shown it but she was afraid, hurt, and desperate. From what he had gathered, the men that had attacked her not had the intent to hurt her but to rape her as well. Anadriel nearly took her own life rather than suffer such a fate, if not for Kael'drin Hopebringers lucky appearance and desperate actions she would have succeeded. Honestly if those cretins weren't already dead by the lad's hands he'd gladly do the deed himself.

He had been far from angry when he found out about what had nearly happened, he was absolutely unequivocally enraged. Even now, Anadriel had been showing signs of trauma from the event. Ever since then she had avoided people, mostly males. She had not even been able to work anymore because of it.

He had immediately arranged to have her moved to his own home not only for her protection but for a chance to recover from the ordeal. He had asked a few healers on what could be done to heal her but they had told him they didn't have the expertise to heal afflictions of the mind. Some of them had told him that only time could truly heal such wounds.

Nesarion had surrendered in defeat and was forced to temporarily part with most of the male helpers in his household. But today, Anadriel had returned with a burning resolve in her eyes. She had gone out earlier today to see her friend and say goodbye. He may not be happy with Anadriel's reasoning but he was nonetheless satisfied with the result. Besides, he supposed she could do worse than a man willing to die for you.

He sighed and leaned on his chair. A few moments later he heard a knock on the door.

"Come in." He bellowed out.

A figure garbed in dark clothing entered together with one of his trusted retainers. The figured pulled back her hood to show her face. It was Coria Dawndreamer, the manager of one of the orphanages in the city.

"Lord Tidebreaker, greetings." Coria said with none of the cheerfulness or playful gestures she usually showed to people.

"Please have a seat." Nesarion said.

"I'm afraid I can't stay for long. I have a message from Prince Kael'thas." Coria took out a scrolled parchment sealed with an emblem. "Please take it and excuse me. I must be on my way." Coria politely bowed and left the room while putting her hood back up.

He waved a hand at his retainer to show her out.

After he was sure that she had left. He took out a hidden knife from his coat and opened the letter. He unrolled it and began reading the contents.

_My studies are over. I will be ending my current research to get home as soon as possible. I fear that father may be losing his sanity. Or someone is influencing him and clouding his judgment..._

_He had never shown his hatred for the boy that visibly as he did recently. I fear that he might be influenced by fel magic which is bringing out his negativity or it could be worse... _

_Please keep watching Nesarion. I don't trust the other members of the High Council. You've told me about the new Head of House Windrunner, I do not think she is a threat. The Windrunner house has always distanced itself from dabbling in politics._

_I trust whatever decision you decide to make. _

_P.S._

_I have spoken with Archmage Antonidas and he has agreed to assess your niece's potential. If he finds her talented enough, he might consider taking her in as another apprentice. I hope you will be able to send her soon._

He smiled at a little at the thoughtful note at the end. But more importantly Prince Kael'thas suspicions had merit. He was sure it was that rat Lord Drathir who was behind this somehow. He had always hated the man's guts. That rat had ambition that did not equal his courage.

He suspected that the situation that had happened to Anadriel had been the result of that rat's machinations. He was still looking through what had happened with the help of his own people but they had found no results so far. Very few people were capable of influencing the city guards and the rangers.

He knew that foul play was involved when he had looked through the planned patrol route of the rangers' that day. Those men who had attacked Anadriel should never have made it to her home without being stopped and thoroughly questioned. Those cretins didn't arrive there from the city's location but rather through the wilds. He could only grit his teeth in anger. There was nothing he could do without solid evidence, and that was almost impossible to find with how slippery his enemies were and now that men involved in the crime were dead. Well better them than his Ana, her life far outweighed any potential lead he may have gotten from her would be rapists.

He still needed to watch the situation though. It would not do to act hastily in such circumstances. He didn't know who was watching him and who his enemies were. It was fortunate that Anadriel had decided to continue her study to be a mage. That would at least keep her away from what was to come.

He went to his office to prepare a new message as he wrote on the parchment with ink. The letter would be sent through magic in order to make sure it reached its destination in time, though it may be costly it was efficient. It would also make sure it would not get intercepted.

Outside the window, he could see a raven circling over the cloudy sky. According to human superstition, those black birds of ill omen were often sighted before a disaster, he was not quite sure if the belief was about a crow or a raven but they stood for the same symbol nonetheless. He chuckled grimly without humor.

The future ahead was dark indeed.

-**V-**

Kael watched as the trained gryphons that had brought them here departed with Sylvanas and her rangers. The whole trip had taken no less than month. Sylvanas had never said anything to him in the end; instead she simply gave him a gift.

He stared at the enchanted quiver.

"Appraisal." He muttered.

[Ancient Sinew Wrapped Lamina - Unique - A magically enchanted quiver that can store up to a thousand arrows."]

His jaw nearly dropped at what he read. He had heard about magically enchanted bags and pouches that could contain far more than what they appeared but this was his first time seeing one, and it was made special for arrows as well.

With a thousand arrows... his imagination ran wild as he thought of ways to abuse the equipment. It had probably cost Sylvanas a lot to procure this. He was incredibly thankful to her, it was even fully stocked to.

_'Well, I still have a day to get to the nearest village.'_

He was glad that they had dropped him off somewhere close. Prior to this, he did not have a chance to test out what Xera had meant by leveling. This would be a opportunity to experiment.

He brought out one of his custom made lures from his pack. He put it on a stick and started his walk. Sooner than he had expected, wolves that had been tempted by the smell of meat quickly arrived. It was a small pack of eight forest wolves.

"Appraisal."

[Forest Wolf Alpha- Level 23 - Normal]

[Forest Wolf - Level 13 - Normal]

[Forest Wolf - Level 15 - Normal]

[Forest Wolf - Level 16 - Normal]

...

Most of them were in the 13 to 16 level ranges, aside from the level 23 Alpha. In one smooth motion he threw the lure high in the air and grabbed his bow. Before they could even react, he had already let loose three arrows. Bear instantly after shooting he lowered his pack while bringing out his blades. This entire situation he was in was almost too easy. It wasn't his first time hunting creatures of this kind. They weren't even true monsters or magical creatures but just predatory beasts.

He easily dispatched the pack. He read through the messages he received. It was a good thing Xera was smart enough to show them after the battle, it would have been distracting otherwise.

[Level Up]

[Gained Skill "Beginner Marksmanship Mastery"]

[Gained Skill "Beginner Rogue Mastery"]

[Level Up]

[Gained Skill "Sinister Strike"]

[Gained Skill "Arcane Shot"]

"Status."

The status window opened. There were a few changes like the window showing his current appearance. He found that mildly interesting as it didn't have that last time.

[Xera will continue to improve the visual interface. If you have something you want to change please just inform Xera]

"Thanks." He said as he looked through the new window.

[**Name**: Kael'drin Hopebringer

**Basic Attributes**:

Agility: 53 (3)

Intellect: 45 (1)

Strength: 30 (2)

Stamina: 44 (1)

**Class**: None

Level 2

**Active Skills**:

Reinforcement - Lvl Max

Structural Grasp - Lvl Max

Sinister Strike - Lvl 1

Arcane Shot - Lvl 1

**Passive Skills**:

Heroic Archery - Lvl 1

Advanced Dual Wielding - Lvl 8

Runes - Lvl 5

Magecraft - Lvl 4

Poison Mastery - Lvl 4

Eye of the Mind - Lvl 7

Hawk Eye - Lvl Max

Beginner Rogue Mastery - Lvl 1]

He looked at the skill that he gained.

"Sinister Strike." He said with uncertainty. The knowledge on how to perform it came to him naturally. But with no target, the energy that gathered in his blades soon faded.

"Xera? How did you do that?"

[If Kael is referring to how we have provided you with the information, then the answer is through Xera. Xera has gathered the extensive experiences and records witnessed by Azeroth to develop into what Xera will call 'Talents'.]

"Wait. How did you end up inside me again?"

[Xera's liquefied essence was used as a catalyst to connect with Kael]

"So where are you right now?"

[As Xera has stated, Xera has to become a proxy for Kael. Xera is currently located within the Core of Azeroth to act as sub-administrator. Azeroth has multiple working sub-administrators but Xera is the first of Xera's existence to be given such privilege. Due to subject Illidan, Xera's physical form is no longer currently functional.]

He conversed with Xera while retrieving any reusable arrows. Once he was done, he picked up the same stick and continued his trek towards the nearby village.

He was attacked once more as he made his way. It was easy taking care of them. He was almost disappointed when there weren't any more monster attacks even with the lure after that. It was late noon when he arrived at the village. The village was surrounded by a low stone wall in all directions from what he could see, with two gates on the north and south sides.

Now that he had a closer look at it, the village was also fairly large. It was thrice the size of a normal village but not quite the size of a small city yet. He assumed it was probably because it was a trading outpost between Quel'thalas and the kingdoms to the south.

He jogged his way towards the pathway to the entrance of the village while lowering the cloth that covered his lower face.

The two human guards stared at him approaching and let him pass inside without issue. Another pair of guards was waiting on the opposite side of the wall. One of the men politely waved him over.

"_Proof of identity, please?_" The man spoke in awkward Thalassian.

"Is the adventurer certificate enough?" He replied back in Common.

"Ah, should have said you could speak Common earlier. But yeah, we can accept that. Can you show it to me?" The man asked.

He handed him his guild certificate which he had prepared in advance. The man placed the ring of his finger near the seal, the gem lit in blue.

"Hmm, yeah this is legit. Here." The certificate was handed back to him. "If you're looking for a place to lodge in for the night we only have one inn here and it's located on the center of town. Just follow the main road." The man explained.

"Thanks. I'll do that then." He nodded gratefully at the guard. He rolled up the parchment in his hands and made sure to place it carefully inside its leather holder. He didn't want it getting ruined. This had been Ragnarn's advice that unfortunately had to learn the hard way.

He had been surprised at the guard's normal reaction to him however. He was so used to getting sneered at and looked down on that it unbalanced him when instead of looks of disdain he was met with looks of envy and admiration. It was probably because of the culture, he shrugged.

He followed the road and was able to spot the inn that the guard referred to. It's name was High Bill Inn. He didn't know if the name was a pun or some kind of wordplay in Common. He shrugged it off and pushed the inn's door open. From the entrance, he could see a receptionist reading a book under the light of a candle.

The receptionist looked up at him when she heard his footsteps.

"Hi, what can I do for you handsome?" The girl asked. She looked young, about sixteen years old with common looks for a human neither being beautiful or ugly but had a pleasant smile.

He raised an eyebrow at that and replied.

"I'm looking for a place to stay the night. Do you have any rooms available?" He asked.

"We do have one. It's five silvers per night and another silver with breakfast, lunch, and dinner included." She said.

"Okay, make that three nights. I'll probably be out at lunch so make it sixteen." He said while looking through his pouch and paying the appropriate sum

"Done." The receptionist said. "Here's your key and the room is at the end of the second floor. We'll have dinner prepared in a while. Would you like me to deliver it to your room?" The girl asked suggestively trying her best to be charming.

"I don't mind eating with other people." He replied, the girl wilted visibly at his response. He brought out another silver coin. "If you can get me a tub and some water it's yours." He said carefully.

"Deal." The girl said perking up with a grin while accepting the coin.

He followed the girl's instructions and went up the stairs. He found the room assigned to him easily and opened the door. It was clean and well maintained. The price was well worth it. Just in case he still checked the sheets and the pillow. He carefully set his bag down in a corner of the room then sat down on the bed.

He looked at the blue box that appeared earlier that he ignored reading what it said.

[Would you like to integrate Skill "Advance Archery Lvl 1" into "Beginner Marksmanship Mastery"?]

"Xera, what will happen if I integrate a skill?"

[Kael's experience in archery will merely be absorbed into Marksmanship. Xera advises Kael to integrate his skills. The experiences Kael has developed on his own will then be added to the Marksmanship skill improving both your ability to learn and execute all range attacks]

He thought about it, there weren't any downsides to it as far as he could see. He would still retain all his skills and memories; it's not like he would lose anything from it if he agreed.

"Okay, I'll allow it." He said, another notification soon popped up afterward.

[Would you like to integrate Skill "Advance Dual Wielding Lvl 8" into "Beginner Rogue Mastery" and "Heroic Archery Lvl 1" into "Beginner Marksmanship Lvl1"?]

He hesitated a little before nodding.

[Beginner Marksmanship Mastery Level Up]

[Beginner Marksmanship Mastery Level Up]

...

[Beginner Marksmanship Mastery Upgraded to Intermediate Marksmanship Mastery]

[Intermediate Marksmanship Mastery Level Up]

[Intermediate Marksmanship Mastery Level Up]

...

[Intermediate Marksmanship Mastery Lvl 7]

[Beginner Rogue Mastery Level Up]

[Beginner Rogue Mastery Level Up]

...

[Beginner Rogue Mastery Upgraded to Intermediate Rogue Mastery]

[Intermediate Rogue Mastery Level Up]

[Intermediate Rogue Mastery Level Up]

...

[Intermediate Rogue Mastery Lvl 8]

He stared at the torrent of blue boxes. At least that was taken care of.

[Xera advices Kael to sleep in order to fully integrate knowledge and allow body to adjust from absorbed essence. Only then will Kael feel the full effects of improvement.]

"I'll do that later." He said as he unequipped most of his armaments to go down and eat dinner.

He got down to the first floor to find the dining room. When he arrived there were already a few people eating quietly. He sat on a table and was soon approached by the girl he saw earlier working as a receptionist.

"Hey! So can I ask your name? It's pretty awkward just calling you, 'you'." The girl asked.

"You can call me Kael." He replied.

"Okay, so you want anything extra? How about a drink before eating?" She asked enthusiastically.

"I'm fine. I don't usually drink but if you have any kind of fruit juice I'd be happy with that." He answered.

She looked at him oddly before replying.

"We do have Garakini juice freshly squeezed. It's sour and usually added to our drinks. It's actually good if you add just a bit of honey or sugar. Would you like some?" She explained before asking.

Garakini sounded like lemons. He nodded.

"I'll take one." He said.

"Okay~. Don't worry, this one's on the house for you." She said with a wink before leaving for another table.

He ate his dinner in peace, his evening was fortunately uneventful. The girl whose name he still didn't know brought him a tub and water, he washed his body as he cleaned himself and went to sleep after that.

He woke up the next morning feeling extremely refreshed as he moved his arms. He could feel that somehow, his body had gotten a bit lighter. He punched the air, a bit stronger as well.

'_Yeah, I am faster._' He thought. '_So this is the effect of absorbing essence._' He could feel every bit of improvement on his body. The fighting style that he had previously developed needed him to have total control of his body, which was why he was easily able to tell if something changed with it.

Getting stronger felt addicting. He did his daily physical exercises, wiped his sweat and went down for breakfast.

The waitress was different from the person yesterday. There was a resemblance; they were probably sisters or relatives. He ordered a cup of milk since it was available. After eating breakfast, he approached the waitress to ask some questions.

"Hello? Are you busy right now?" He asked.

"I-I, no, what is it?" She said while blushing.

"Do you know if the Adventurer's Guild has a branch office in this village?" He asked the girl.

"Yeash, I mean yes. It's on the entrance of the village to the south. It's a big building, you can't miss it." She answered.

"Is it possible to borrow the inn's kitchen later this evening? I'd like to cook dinner for myself." He stopped the girl before she could say anything. "It's not that I'm unsatisfied with the food. I just want to cook." He said honestly.

"It's fine. I'll ask my dad about it. U-uhm, is there anything else," the girl asked while fidgeting.

"Ah, that's all thanks for your time." He answered and went back to his room. He needed to get out and try to get as much as he could from the essence absorption. He was pretty sure there would be hunting quests in the guild that he could do while killing monsters to gains their essence. He might as well make some extra money in the process while leveling up.

He carefully went through his equipment to check for any problems. Finding none he donned his leather armor. He then gathered his blades, bow, and the new quiver that Sylvanas had given him. He checked his gear to make sure he was not lacking in anything for his hunt.

To an outsider they might have considered him excessively equipped and extremely dangerous with his bow at his back and the blades at his waist. His black leather armor with its nearly visible runic inscriptions further made him look more intimidating. Finally he checked through his pack and made sure nothing was missing. With that done, he carefully placed a rune formation that would place a temporary bounded field on where the pack was located to make it invisible.

He smiled in satisfaction at his work. Some may call him paranoid but it was never wrong to be cautious.

He went downstairs quickly exiting the inn and headed to the guild while the sun was still up. He met the receptionist girl on the way out and nodded with a smile. The girl smiled back and waved at him as he left.

It was early in the morning, yet the village seemed to be already awake. He had to hold back the urge to sigh in irritation when people seemed to be purposely avoiding him on his way to his destination. He carefully made his way to the village's south gate towards the building the girl told him about.

Surely enough, the adventurer's guild building was the largest building in the area with its five story structure. Compared to the one to two story houses and establishments it towered over other buildings

He entered the guild with a bit of curiosity.

Inside the building, a few adventurers were already lining up with quest vouchers in their hands. He made his way to the guild's second floor. He was stopped at the top of the stairs by a pair of adventurer's who seemed to be arguing about something. He looked curiously at the odd pair.

The first figure was what looked like to be a male Gnome with a sword as big as himself and as thick as half his size on his back and a tall humanoid hyena wearing a robe and holding a staff.

"Huh!? Say that to my face again dog-face! I dare you!" The Gnome shouted at the Gnoll.

"Your diminutive brain has obviously not processed what I have said yet. It was your fault that we have failed that last mission. I, as the glorious leader of our party, am asking you," the Gnoll pointed down at the gnome who seemed about to explode any minute, " you dimwit to follow my orders to increase our chances of success."

"You wanna go at it!? Who you calling a dimwit!? I know what that means dog-head! Your insulting me because I'm small aren't you!?" The gnome accused his companion as he snarled at the Gnoll.

"It is 'you're' and not 'your'. Surely even your small brain can comprehend the difference?" The dog headed humanoid sneered.

"All right! I've had it with you!" The gnome said and held the handle of his strange sword.

"Oho? You want to match your muscle headed strength to my intellect? How droll indeed... but I'm afraid it won't be not much of match." The Gnoll elegantly held his staff with his right hand.

Before they could come to blows, he cleared his throat and spoke up.

"Can I walk through?" He said to get the pairs attention and move out of the way before the fight started. "You're blocking the way."

The two looked at him with a glare before turning to look at each other and nodded in unison.

"Let us take this outside, shall we? It would not do for us to damage the guild's facilities. Unless you want to pay another fine that is..." The Gnoll told his companion.

"Heh! Your on doggy!" The gnome replied as he cracked his knuckles.

Kael watched as the two made their way down the stairs. He had been confused at first at the disparity between the information he had and what he just witnessed.

Weren't Gnomes supposed to be more level headed than that? Gnolls from what he gathered were not that intellectually gifted. He was surprised to see both races but more so at their sheer oddity. He shrugged and made his way to the nearly vacant floor towards the quest board, a silver and gold plate above indicated for what rank this quests were for.

He looked through the available hunting quests.

[Greenhill's Bandit Extermination - Gold Rank and above only - Four teams of Silver ranks would be considered

Request Details -Removal of bandit groups: Sunset Raiders, Bloodhill Bandits, and Wolves of Ardebil

These groups of bandits have been known to be cooperating within the last few months to rob unsuspecting victims passing through the Greenhill region. They are guilty of rape, kidnapping, and murder. (For more information please inquire at the guild desk.)

Commissioner - Far and Wide Trading Company

Reward - 30 Gold Coins

Request Completion Requirements - Heads of the leader of the bandit groups - Reward is given whether the bandits are delivered dead or alive.

Area detail - The area is composed of heavy forested hills. Beware of dangers from local monster population.]

One request in particular had caught his attention. It was a request to put down criminals. He took the request paper and went towards the only manned receptionist desk.

"What can I do for you?" A tall bald muscled human was sitting on a chair obviously too small for him and writing on a record book. His tanned skin and beard that could match a dwarf's were his most eye catching features. He was wearing a shirt that was a size too small for his body but possessed the sharp gaze of a warrior. Probably a retired veteran adventurer Kael surmised.

"I want to take this request." He pushed the paper to the man's side.

"That's... the Greenhill bandit extermination request." The man raised an eyebrow. "I don't think you're qualified..."

Kael brought out his Guild certificate.

"I also want to designate this guild as my post for the next few days." He said while showing his papers.

The man took out a small pair of reading glasses and squinted at the writings. He scanned through it one more time and brought out a ring similar to they used at the gates. Except this ring had five gems on it, he passed the ring over the brand on the certificate and the ring's blue gem lit up.

"Hoh? A Mithril Rank? Impressive… there hasn't been one in this area for years now." The huge man's smile which he assumed was an attempt to be friendly made him look even more menacing. Kael was not one to judge by appearances but the guy looked more like a thug than a guild receptionist.

"Now let me welcome to Windvale Village, Kael'drin Hopebringer, are you planning to stay in the area for a while?" The receptionist asked.

"I'm planning on looking at the requests if there's a requirement for someone like me here..."Kael stated. It was not out of arrogance but rather necessity. If they didn't require a Mithril Ranked adventurer's aide, then that meant the area had fewer number of powerful opponents. It was also to make sure he was where he was needed.

"Hehe, to be honest with you there's always a demand for high ranked adventurer's in areas like this. The village is growing enough that it might become a city in time. In general, that's something good for the village. But with its growth comes some bad points. Bandit groups are growing larger and larger in the area.

"They're all gathering to have a piece of the pie so to speak. A village like this can't afford a knight outpost yet. What we have is the local militia. They're strong enough combined with the adventurer's guild to defend the village but they're not enough to send out to patrol the trade routes." The man explained.

"So the bandits are gathering and setting up their own little bases. They'll probably set it up so to collect toll from the merchants and people passing through their territory. Is that right?" Kael deducted.

"You're a smart one. Yes, the situation we'd like to avoid is that kind of scenario. If the bandit groups grow large enough, they might even become the local warlords. That would kill this village's growth. The sea trade route is costly that's why most merchants still prefer to travel through the land routes to avoid the higher costs. Costs mean a loss in profits.

"A few small merchants have banded together to form the Far and Wide Trading Company, that's the company that's planning to permanently improve the trade route going through this village. They're ambitious but fair. They've been planning it for years but with not enough manpower, the progress has been slow." The receptionist explained.

Kael thought about it. It would be good to settle here for a few months so that he could get used to the culture of other races before moving on. It would also help the people of this village.

"Okay, you've got me there. You can register me here as an adventurer for the next three months, after that... let's see if there would be anyone else to take on these jobs." Kael accepted. "Can you also list that request for me, I want to take it and start surveying the area so I can be back by noon."

"No problem, but are you sure you don't want to consider camping out? Greenhill is pretty far. It would take you half a day to make there by horse. Then you'd have to survey the area. I don't think that's enough time." The muscled man asked.

"It's no problem for me. I can probably scout out the whole area in two days then if it's only that far." Kael explained.

The man took out another record book and began to write down on it. He looked like a giant Santa Clause bending and squinting at his record lists of naughty children as he worked and checked his list twice.

"Okay, I've listed your request. Do you want to party with anyone on this?" The receptionist asked.

Kael considered it for the moment. He could probably finish the quest alone but he had never been in a party before. After all, he had never considered going with other people since he knew that he could achieve almost any request alone. But now, his thoughts also went on to helping the current adventurers in the area gain experience so that they could take over when he left. Also it wouldn't hurt if he gained experience in working with a party. He might be required to lead a Quest if he ever reached the Adamantium rank.

"Is there anyone available who I can take with me? They should at least be able to keep up." Kael said honestly, he didn't want to prolong this quest more than he needed to. The longer he spent idling, the more innocents died to those bandits.

The receptionist was deep in thought when a loud boom was heard from the outside.

"Hmm, yeah. You can take those two with you to also keep them out of trouble." The receptionist grinned; it made him look like a villain about to steal a candy from a baby. Or in this case dump someone's problem children on someone else who could handle them.

Kael tried not to back off from his seat. He was tempted to just grab the request voucher and run outside to avoid being saddled with this new hassle but the receptionists massive hands landed on his shoulders.

"I think I have the best candidates for you." The receptionist laughed evilly.

Kael did his best not regret the decision he had put himself through. He suspected that he already knew who the receptionist was talking about.

If they were competent enough, they couldn't be that bad right?

Note:

Sorry for being unable to reply to review guys. I had one written out that I was suppose to add here but can't find the file anymore. I'll try adding replies to reviews on the next chap tho.

Kael/Shirou's age increase was caused by his life-force being severely depleted. Not because I wanted to try writing a lemon. Certainly not. Lol.

Also, I'll be increasing Azeroth's canon size to be nearly similar to Earth-size to make it easier to judge distances.

So in this chapter I'd introduced his would be party members. I hope you people were not expecting him to have a harem party? Because you'd be heavily disappointed if that's the case. I refuse to do such a thing. Though I enjoyed the LN Slave Harem in a Labyrinth... and some other variations of such a scenario. Because as some of you may have noticed, I'm sticking with a bit of realistic approach on writing this story. There will still be moments of Deus ex Machina though, but there'd always be some explanation along the way.

I wasn't satisfied with the chapter though. Felt like too much of a filler. Hopefully, ya'll find the next one more satifying.

A shout out to '**Bloody Hero' **for helping me out with this and pointing out mistakes I've made. He's been a great help, he's also the one who edited this. As an apology for the late chap… I'll upload the next one earlier.


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: I don't own Warcraft or any Type-Moon concept incorporated into the story.

I'll accept suggestions but not changes to the plot.

Thanks to **MarksmanKNG **for betareading the story.

Please leave a review or anything really... Read and enjoy...

* * *

-**I**-

_I am Anna Hopebringer. Inheritor of the mantle of my ancestor's burden. I am the ninth Guardian to answer the call. Anasterian Sunstrider is my father's name. Aurinice Hopebringer was my mothers name, Hopebringer our forefather's title, the First King of Halcyon. Our ancestral line has ruled over Halcyon since its founding during the Age of Chaos. I am a proud bearer of the Hopebringer name._

_Grandfather was the last ruler of Halcyon, thus mother kept his name in memory of the glorious past._

_Ever since I was a child, I had been considered unusual by my siblings and peers. I played not with my fellow children but with cold sharp steel. I threw away silken dolls and soft constricting clothes. From as far as I could remember, I was able to 'converse' with blades and all kinds of weaponry. Other noble children had called me weird and shunned me, my older siblings stared at me with fear and anger._

_I had not cared for their heated glares nor their envious stares. I had friends in the forms of beautiful thin swords to the heavy dangerous glaives. They 'spoke' to me about stories that mother could not. They 'told' me tales of great heroes and villains who overcame impossible odds to forever change Azeroth. _

_I admired them all. There was no true villain when their intent was for the good of their people or for the sake of their dreams and ideals. But what I admired most were the unsung Heroes, the people who took it upon themselves to fight not for their own but for the greater good. Those whose names were obscured from history and whose sacrifices were understood by the few._

_I admired the Heroes who hid behind shadowed veils. I was obsessed with them_

_But alas, such dreams were not allowed to me. I was a member of the royal family, a princess. I could never truly become an unknown and obscure figure. Nevertheless, I took it upon myself to train and improve my abilities so that when such a time came that I could do good without being known, I would act upon and savor it great joy. I would not be able do that without the strength of arms. The same blades who were my friends were also my teachers._

_It would only be when I turned eight that I learned the significance of my ability. I was the inheritor of the my grandfather's bloodline, she who received the revered ability. Those who carried such abilities were immediately deemed the rightful rulers of a nation. My dream was unjustly crushed under reality's heels. As the ruler of a nation, I would be placed upon the pedestal and spotlight. Every movement would be watched and recorded._

_It was a nightmare._

_That was until I was involved in a plot to reopen a portal to the Twisted Nether realm. I had accidentally been thrown through the portal and was not able to able to return back in time before the portal was closed. I was doomed to die but I would not die a dog's death. My enemies would have to grasp victory through my rotting corpse._

_I fought with the creatures for days on end. Without indication of time, I was not sure how long I had struggled. It seemed the ancestors were not blind to my effort because as I fought with my life being drained from me with every breath, I awakened the ability that enabled my predecessors to defeat the evils that had threatened the world. With such a gift, I was able to cut through space and return to Azeroth._

_Upon my return, I had learned that I was declared dead. The seat of heir to the throne returned to the hands of the firstborn. One would normally think that would cause me to despair and desperately proclaim my existence to reclaim what was rightfully mine but it did not. Instead... I was overjoyed! _

_With the ancestor's gifts and my own wit and abilities I had become the Ninth Guardian, a title that I deemed proper as I was the ninth person to inherit and awaken the legendary ability of the bloodline that was appropriately titled 'The Heart of Steel'._

_Who could have thought such sequence of events would allow me to fulfill my dream?_

_I will not let such an opportunity go. I will grasp it with an iron grip. I will become a Hero in the Shadows!_

-Excerpt from the journal of Anna Hopebringer, leader of the Shadow Guardian Association. An adult who held delusions of grandeur inflicted with the terrifying illness, an affliction of the mind that would come to be known as 'Chuunibyou', but is an undeniable existence whose power could enable her mere whims to dictate the flow of the world.

-'Princess Anna does not know that her existence was already known to the world and that changing her hair and eye color did not make her unrecognizable. She styles herself as Nana Doombringer and has changed her white themed original appearance to a beauty with black hair and eyes.'

* * *

-**II**-

Kael stared down at his opponent, for once. The gnome he had encountered earlier that day was Kethan Battlemaster, a warrior. From the history of his blade, he was fairly skilled enough to acquire the rank of Gold. The duo that the receptionist mentioned were this two, off to the distance was the gnoll mage/shaman? According to his _Appraise_, the gnoll was some kind of Spirit Summoner.

This fight had started because the gnome wanted to see if he was a 'genuine' Mithril ranker. He had agreed, also to learn about his would be party members.

"Can we start already?" The gnome asked. He looked like a man child with ears the size of his head. His head was bald and he was clad in full metal plate armor. It was a surprise he could move that well with all that weight on him.

Kael stared at the gnome quizzically. Didn't they signal the fight already started?

"Are you sure you want me to beat you up without your weapon?" The gnome remarked.

That was when he realized he wasn't holding his weapons. The weapons he had on him were lethal blades powerful enough to cut through steel. He didn't want to make trouble for his future by destroying the gnome's sword. He ignored the gnomes look as he went off to the side to pick a wooden practice sword, this area was the Adventurer Guild's sparring area. Most adventurers tended to ignore this wooden training weapons in favor of working with real steel during spars.

He run his magic through the wooden sword, altering it further into a blunt weapon.

"Hey! Are you taking this seriously!?" The gnome shouted angrily.

"Yes." Kael replied succinctly.

"Tch. Don't complain if you get injured pretty boy!" The gnome shouted and charged towards him.

He was already used to running magical energy through his body that reinforcing himself now required only a mere thought. He had noticed early on during his training that continuous reinforcing himself didn't deplete his magical energy anymore. Though that was if he didn't reinforce it any further than what he normally did with his body only improved twice passively with magic running in his veins.

He noted with an impassive face as the gnome leapt towards him to cleave him in half. Everything was moving too slowly in with his enhanced perception. With minimum movement, he moved to the side and dodged the blow that showered gravel around the area as the sword hit nothing but ground. With simple motions, he raised the wooden sword and struck.

"Thwack!" The audible sound of wood hard as metal hitting someone's head could be heard. An angry bruise formed on the gnome's little head.

Kael moved back a step as the gnome tried to cut his legs off.

"Thwack!" Another bruise accompanied the first one.

The gnome, now fuming, his face red with rage let out a bellowing war cry.

"ORAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!" The gnome shouted, his movements getting faster and swing getting stronger.

"Thwack."

"Swish."

"Thwack."

"BOOOOOOM!"

"Thwack."

"RAAAAAAAH! BOOM!"

"Thwack."

For every attack the gnome attempted, the resounding noise of his head getting hit and his bruises multiplying only resulted in enraging him further.

"Thwack."

The gnome's bald head only further emphasized the red bruises on his head. He could already hear the gnome companion laughing off to the side. Kael dodged every blow with ease. No matter how strong the gnome was, he couldn't hit Kael with any blow. He was like a leaf being blown over by the wind as he drifted through each powered strike.

"STOP! BOOM!"

"Thwack."

"DODGING!"

"Thwanck."

"FUUUUUUUUUUCKKKK!"

"Thwack. Thwack. Thwack. Thwack."

The gnome's frustration increased and so did the welts on his head.

Kael didn't stop as the gnome started to tire out. He only lowered his wooden sword when the gnome finally slumped in defeat.

"Thwack."

"Stop damn it!" The gnome shouted as he covered his head.

Kaels stopped when the gnome dropped his weapon. But he could still see the will to fight in his eyes.

The amused receptionist and the snickering gnoll arrived as soon as the gnome gave up.

"That was certainly amusing. May I have your name please?" The gnoll politely asked. It was still surprising how gentlemanly the gnoll looked and acted from no matter what angle.

"It's Kael." After a thought, he added. "Kael Archer. You can call me anything you want."

"I'll call you Leader Kael then. We have heard the Guildmaster's proposition. He has agreed to pardon some of our offences and lighten the requirements for us to reach Gold rank, in exchange for assisting you on a quest. I hope we can work well together Leader. Oh, and before I forget, how impolite of me. My name is Eglef Gnawcrest." The gnoll said with a flourish.

"This guy here is Kethan Battlemaster." The Guildmaster spoke for the angry gnome. "They are both well accomplished adventurers and they should have reached Gold by now if we haven't considered their past actions and reputation during the Guild's deliberation."

Kael nodded and searched through his pockets. He found a small vial containing a red liquid and took it out.

"Here." Kael said as he handed it towards the glaring gnome. "It's a special concoction of mine. You can drink it directly to numb the pain and improve the healing."

"Hrmm." The gnome grunted.

The gnome took the vial suspiciously while grimacing in pain from the bruises on his head. He removed the cork and sniffed at the contents of the vial.

"Wine!" His face suddenly brightened in delight and chugged the contents of the small bottle. "You made shit tasting potion taste like wine!? Alright! I'm joinin' so got more of this?" The gnome said as if forgetting the person he was speaking with spent the better part of a few minutes hitting his head.

"That was one of my experimental brews. I still haven't gotten it right on how to replicate that one. Sorry." Kael said and watched the gnome sulk at being deprived.

"Let us ignore this midget, here. So, what do you say we start travelling while discussing the details of the request. Daylight is burning and it would take an awful lot of time to reach the Greenhill area." The gnoll proposed.

"Sounds good." Kael agreed.

That was how they ended up racing through the grasslands leading to that hilly area.

From an outsider's perspective, an elf and a saddled wolf spirit were racing across the grasslands heading towards the infamous Greenhill. The Greenhills was the only easily traversable location going north from Stratholme. Most of the southern part bordering Quel'thalas is filled with mountainous regions making most trips with caravans near impossible aside from very few locations.

That was why villages such as Windvale would flourish when the trade routes were directed to through them.

The Greenhills trade route that the Far and Wide Company ambitiously wanted to obtains is one of the safer paths. But with the bandit infestation, traversing through the area has been expensive and dangerous. Merchants hired adventurers and mercenaries to guard their trade goods but such requests were costly. That was why instead of hiring adventurers as guards, the Far and Wide Company was offering a generous amount that could equal a small fortune to annually clear out the area of bandits.

The last bandit extermination quest that was accepted by the guild resulted in a disaster for the adventurers. No one had ever expected bandits to cooperate and increase in numbers that fast.

A party of ten Silver Ranks were wiped out because of this assumption. They had assumed it would be like usual. Bandits were too disorganized and undisciplined as a bunch. A group as large as fifty or more required extreme measures to keep together. Unless of course there was a leader charismatic enough to command the respect of the nearby bandit groups. They had gathered together drawn by their greed and ambition.

But that was not the problem that Kael had the most difficulty of dealing with right now. No, it was his companions.

"A woman has to have teats! Boobs are the way to go. If I die, I want to die with a nice pair in between my face as I welcome death." The gnome sat behind his gnoll companion as they rode together on a blue windwolf spirit that the gnoll summoner had call forth.

"I must say you have unsatisfactory taste. I need not repeat myself and I shall not be moved by none but a woman's hips! It is the hips or rather a woman's posterior which determines her sexual beauty. Your inclinations are obviously inferior to mine.

"How could you not understand the loveliness of a woman's wide birthing hips as they shake in front of you! Your aesthetic appreciation is bland as always." The gnoll declared as he argued with his gnome companion over another trivial matter. But if Kael mentioned that, he would be lectured by his current party members.

"You just don't get it do ya. A great pair of breasts are the best! Specially in bed when a woman's tiddies bounce as you fuck her! You're missing half of your life if you haven't experienced that yet!" The gnome answered back.

"This argument will result in nowhere. So as to make a better judgement, let us allow our party leader to declare which one of us is right. What do you say, Kethan?" The Gnoll proposed.

"Heh, I like the sound of that! You say some good things every once in a while, Eglef! Hey party leader! What do you say? Which one's better, teats or asses?" The Gnome prodded.

A question that has confounded many men. But Kael was not just any man, he was a man who stared down monsters that could erase his very existence, Zelretch's grin as he is about to prank someone and hungry Sabers who had not been fed their meals. With that, Kael had a true and tested answer which wouldn't kill him even if women related to him found out somehow.

It was also because Kael could not hold back from deflating their expectations and replied back.

"Thighs. Thicc thighs are the gateways to heaven."

The two went oddly silent at his words. Kael looked beside him at the wolf that he was racing with. The two were looking at him as if he had revealed a great revelation from heaven. Their eyes were shining with admiration.

"You sir, are a true man of culture. A man of culture indeed! I had not expected the quiet and handsome party leader to have such a simple but interesting answer!" Eglef Gnawcrest, the Gnoll, stated.

"I swear I might have been blind for the rest of my life not to have arrived that answer yet. You're good Kael! What do you say we visit the whorehouses together next time? I didn't know what they said about the quiet ones hiding the most was actually true!" Kethan Battlemaster exclaimed in surprise and chortled boisterously.

"You have earned my respect Sir Kael! From now on, you will have my staff and wits at your command." Eglef said as he thumped his chest while holding onto the reins.

"And you got my blade! I say, you're a man amongst men Kael!" Kethan also saluted in respect.

'_I don't want to be respected because of that._' Kael kept silent.

Kael had to prevent himself from rolling his eyes at their antics. The odd pair were one of the few Gold ranked who made a living in the village. They were, eccentric that was for sure.

"What do you know about this area?" Kael asked to divert the topic.

"Hrrr. Yes, the Greenhills area hasn't always been this infested with bandits. I have come to the conclusion that the bandits were drawn in because of need or were driven to band together because of fear. The former case is more likely than the latter. When we had passed through this are in the past, the situation has not been as bad as it is now." Eglef replied.

Kael noted that they were entering a forested area of the hilly region. They were travelling fast, he had not been expecting his companions to be able to keep up. He kept his senses on full alert as the bushes and trees grew denser.

He slowed down as his already sensitive ears that were further reinforced heard the sound of people nearby. He halted and signaled his companions to keep quiet. They complied readily showing unexpected professionalism on the job.

He guided them towards where he heard the sound while the two dismounted from the wolf spirit and followed after him. He stopped and turned to face the two.

"I found traces of them. They are up ahead. I want you guys to keep alert while I scout ahead. Try to avoid detection and wait for me to come back." Kael said.

The two nodded solemnly, their hands already on their weapons.

"Don't worry about us party leader. I also have a proposal, I'm able to summon an invisible bird spirit that we can send up to them. Would that not be preferable?" Eglef said.

Kael shook his head.

"It would be better if I can assess them with my own eyes. There's a limit to the vision you can get from summons, right?" Kael asked.

"Yes, you are correct." Eglef answered. "We will be on the look out then, leader. [May the spirits bless your steps, light as wind you shall be. _Windsteps._] Good luck leader." Eglef said after giving a small magical blessing.

Kael nodded and made his way to where he was hearing the chatter of humans. He tried to analyze the simple yet complex weave of magic that was lightening his footsteps while further making his nearly audible movements undetectable. Kael had a great deal of experience within forests. His career as an adventurer of Silvermoon had ensured that.

He could make out a clearing about half a kilometer ahead of him. He could see everything so clearly even without reinforcement. His eyes focused zoomed in on the bandit camp. It was a small encampment with twelve bandits visibly out in the open. His face twisted with disgust when he caught sight of two female captives being held in the camp. Their clothes were torn and they had bruises and wounds all over them. Their blank listless eyes stared at nothingness.

This was not the main camp. Kael could be sure that they could not possibly fit all three bandit groups here. Each bandit group had more than twenty members in the past. He knew that they should have grown larger than that. This camp was likely an outpost of sorts. After making sure he had all the bandits counted, he made his way back to his companions.

He resisted the urge to attack the camp and rescue the women held there. It was better to hold off and prepare a plan to deal with them all swiftly. Kael had spotted no mages in the camp. The bandits had other ways to communicate with their main camp, he concluded.

"Hey, you alright, leader?" Kethan asked him when he saw the anger on his face.

"Don't worry. I've located one of their outposts. They had at most about twelve people within the camp. They were about to head out but not sure if that's really all of them." Kael said grimly.

"This is difficult. If that's the size of their outpost... I'm afraid their main camp would have up to a hundred people. We may not be able to take them all down if that's the case. The best plan of action would be for us to sneak in nearby their main camp and attack it with destruction magic, which I'm ashamed to say is not my specialty." Eglef said despondently.

"Can't we just crash into their camp like usual? The Guild's not expecting us to hunt all of them down. We get the request done as long as we hunt down the leaders." The gnome said.

Kael shook his head. If most of the bandits were able to escape, it would be the same again once they found another leader.

"If we want to get to Gold rank you should learn to think about the consequences of your actions." Eglef admonished his long-time friend.

"Eugh, okay geez. So whaddya think leader? You got a plan?" Kethan asked.

Kael was easily able to come up with a plan due to his past experiences. He stared at the Gnoll intellectual and the Gnome hothead.

"Have you both prepared any camping gear?" Kael asked.

"I made sure to always have some prepared on hand." Eglef gestured towards Kethan's pack.

"I want you two to find a good place to make a camp in. Far enough from here for us to remain undetected but not too far so we won't have to travel too far when we attack. I'll scout out their remaining outposts. We'll attack by dawn tomorrow. You can go ahead, I'll track you down later and explain further on the plan." Kael said as he prepared to leave again. He had not expected to camp out today that was why he didn't bring any luggage. He could still survive on his own by finding sustenance from the forest.

"Wait leader, would you consider taking one of my familiars with you? It'll make it easier to find us when you come back." Eglef asked.

Kael considered it and nodded.

"[_For you are never within sight, My sight is but within you. Come forth, Airsparrow._]" Eglef finished his incantation and a small glass like bird appeared in his hands. The glassy surface shined with light and it turned invisible, the only indication it was there was its blue bead like eyes. The bird flew to Kael's shoulder with a gesture from Eglef.

"I know I don't need to worry but take care leader. We'll go on ahead." Kethan bid him.

He waved a last time and made his way back into the forest disappearing out of sight.

* * *

-**III**-

Several corpses could be seen as a young man and a group of bandits were facing off against each other.

"Drop the sword, boy!" The bandit leader shouted. "Or I swear by the light the little lady gets her throat slit."

The young man grit his teeth in anger. They hadn't seen the ambush coming until the trap was sprung. Though they were able to kill almost half of the bandit group, they were soon overwhelmed by numbers.

Such a situation would normally have never happened but because of the nature of the terrain and the element of surprise, the young man's companion was captured.

The bare edge of the dagger was lightly touching the woman's skin. The young woman could only hold her breath to avoid getting the weapon from touching her throat. It was dangerously close to the throbbing vein in her neck.

The young paladin glared angrily as he was forced to drop his weapon lest the cur in front of him proceed with his threat. He was angry at himself for getting himself and his friend caught up in this situation. When he had heard about bandits attacking caravans on the way to Stratholme, he had been enraged. He took it upon himself to cleanse these bloody criminals from the Kingdom.

"Good boy." The bandit in front of him sneered. His knife still sticking into the young woman's throat. "Don't worry, we won't be hurtin ya. You're too expensive for that!" The bandit leader said while taking their weapons.

The paladin snarled at the bandits who dared to molest the young woman. The bandit leader harshly hit the men and barked orders for them to back off. This relieved him a bit.

"Tie em up. Cadius, I want you to guard em little lady and his knight. We don't want the boys touching em. I recognize the little lady, she's some kinda important nobility who was visiting the area. We don't want em bloody paladins seriously hunting us down." The leader shouted as he ordered some others to strip their dead companions of their valuables.

"Hey boss! How about the boy?" A large dark skinned man asked. The bandit leader had to grimace. He needed to suppress his men's bloodlust. They couldn't take it out on the noble girl who killed their companions with her spells but they could take it out on the young man who did so.

"Just make sure you don't kill the boy." The bandit leader replied. In truth, he wasn't the leader. He was merely the captain of this group. He had been forced to join the large bandit group because of fear. Join or die. That was the ultimatum from the Warlock who was leading the bandit groups.

The young paladin glared at the men who were approaching him menacingly.

What would happen next was something he didn't want to remember. Still, by the end of it, he was still alive. HIs dignity was in tatters, his pride was broken but he was alive.

The young paladin swore by the Light he would castrate this men one by one and hang them by the balls. The young paladin's body was dragged along with his female companion back to the camp.

The main camp was covertly hidden in a valley between two hills. A creek was in the nearby and bandits had been able to build something of a fort over the ruins of a settlement. The paladin carefully noted the details of the camp. Though his body was battered and bruised all over, his mind was still intact.

They were brought to the largest house within the camp. Inside, the bandit group dragged them to the basement. They were chained to the walls and stripped of their belongings. The paladin's armor was stripped from him. He had no weapon nor means of escape. As the bandits left them to their own devices, the female mage leaned over and whispered to the paladin.

"Arthas, are you alright?" The young woman asked.

"I'm fine, luckily, they don't know who we truly are. If they did, they wouldn't even dare touch us." Arthas replied back in a low voice. "I'm sorry Jaina, I got you caught up in this mess. If only I'd paid more attention earlier, the paladin gritted his teeth in anger. He would gauge out their eyes and rip off their tongues for what they had done to him.

He would make sure no one ever learned of it.

"Don't worry about it. I'm sure we'll have the chance to escape somehow." His friend whispered optimistically.

Doubtful. But he didn't speak out his thoughts.

"Yeah, I'm sure." He replied back.

His reputation as a Paladin was at stake. At the back of his mind, he silently blamed himself for thinking himself invincible and rushing headlong into this place. Still, they had luck on their side. The bandits wanted them alive and ransomed. Who knew if they would have an opportunity to escape later. The paladin was sure he would get an earful from his mentor and superior if they ever got back.

At noon, the guards went to check on them and provide them with food. Arthas refused to take any of the food. He didn't know what they were up to and he was suspicious of who could be the leader of this group. The Warlock arrived later when the sun was down.

Arthas glared at the leader of this scum. The gaunt pale man looked at them with disinterest but it lit up when he saw him.

"Hmm, what do we have here... hehehe. It seems you've done a good job Baden! Go tell my assistant to prepare a raven!" The Warlock stared at the two hostages with ill hidden glee. When he was sure that the they were alone, the Warlock spoke again.

Arthas felt dread at the man's next words.

"A little princess and his prince, what fortune has graced you to fall upon my presence. Do not worry, we will take good care of you. With you, we may even be able to take over the Kingdom." The Warlock grinned madly. After those words, the Warlock left but not before doubling their guards.

"Shit!" The paladin cursed silently. Everything seemed to be going worse by the moment. It did get worse after that.

The Warlock returned later carrying a vial containing murky violet liquid. They forced his mouth open as they poured the liquid down his throat. He retched at the horrible taste and smell of the liquid in an attempt to vomit it out. His efforts were in vain.

The paladin heard the warlock muttering about a 'ritual' and the vile potions effects. Arthas could barely hear anything as his head started to throb and his vision grew dizzy.

Later that night, they heard the sounds of muffled screams before a person appeared before them. Arthas stared slack jawed as the person sneaked up on their guards and cut their throats with insane speed. Arthas wasn't sure whether the person was male or female. But their form was beautiful as they cut down the bandits before they could react.

"Are you alright?" The person spoke to them. From the scarce light of the torches, they were able to see the person's face. Their rescuer was an elf, their face and voice was androgynous enough that they could be mistaken for a woman. Arthas wasn't sure but he accepted the assistance.

"Who are you?" Arthas heard himself mutter. His senses still dull from the potion he was fed earlier. He didn't get the answer as a few moments later, he fainted.

* * *

-**IV**-

Leader Kael'drin is impressive. His skills were genuine. He had never expected to meet a high elf outside of the High Kingdom. From the hearsays he had overheard from human gossip, the high elves were haughty and arrogant. But they were powerful spell casters. Eglef thought as he turned towards his gnome companion.

Kael was neither a spellcaster nor was he arrogant. From his short conversations with the elf, Eglef was able to get a general feel for his character.

It was a pleasant surprise when he found out that there was a new adventurer qualified to enter the Adventurer Guild's upper floors. He had not expected it to be a Mithril ranked high elf warrior.

He had tried proposing to the leader earlier to summon another wolf spirit mount but he had declined. He had asked how Kael would be able to keep up but was only answered that he would run with them. It would have been a burden on his mana reserves but it was good for the Mithril ranked elf to have a good impression of them. He had to admit it had hurt his pride a bit when he noticed that Kael was controlling his speed for them to keep up instead.

He sniffed the air to try to detect Kael's presence. It was gone as soon as he was out of the area.

Eglef was sure it was because of the runic engravings. Kael'thas was a strange fellow.

"Let's go Kethan. I want to make sure to have our camp prepared before leader returns." Eglef urged his companion.

He muttered a spell to summon two of his bird familiars to keep an eye out in the area.

"Hmmp, don't order me around dog-head." Kethan said as he followed after him.

They were able to quickly find a good location with his familiar's assistance. Kethan grumbled as he unpacked their camping equipment and set up for tonight. But even with all his complaints the gnome was able to set it all up quickly.

Eglef summoned another pair of familiars and sat down to meditate to conserve and regenerate mana while keeping his senses attuned with his familiars. He was keeping a look out for any potential monster or enemies. Luckily there were none. Night fell and Kethan was finished cooking dinner. They ate in silence while waiting for the elf to come back.

It was unusual for them to be quiet like this but because of the stakes with their current job, they didn't want to be detected.

Eglef had proposed to have the first watch while Kethan rested. He accepted the proposal.

Eglef was broken out of his meditation when he detected the bird spirit he had summoned earlier that accompanied Kael. He prepared swiftly and grabbed his staff that was just beside him.

His eyes glowed golden in the dark as he tried to locate the elf. He poked his snoring companion. Eglef signaled to get ready without indicating it was an enemy. He would have yelped in surprise when the elf seemed to appear out of nowhere. His eyes were alert.

"Who's there?" Kethan spoke as he gripped his swords handle.

"It's me, Kael." Eglef relaxed a bit when he heard the elf's voice. He could smell fresh blood on the elf.

The elf's form was illuminated under the light of a half moon. His form in the dark night was hazy.

"Whew, you surprised me there. I could have sworn you appeared from the shadows if Eglef didn't tell me you were coming. So how is it? Are we going with your plan?" Kethan asked with excitement as he detected the bloodlust coming off from Kael in waves.

Even Eglef who was a mage was able to feel it.

Kael's face was set into a cold unreadable expression.

"Have both of you rested?" The elf asked.

They both nodded.

"I'm ready whenever you are." The gnome replied.

"My mana is at full capacity." Eglef answered.

"I was able to locate the main camp. While scouting, I destroyed two of their outposts which are the farthest from their main camps. I think we should strike tonight. I saw some bandits return with hostages to their camp. It seems they're holding a celebration of sorts. A majority of the bandits are indisposed. It's a lucky break for us but the problem are the people they took hostage. It would be problematic if we let those hostages die...or live."

"Who were they?" Eglef hesitantly asked.

"They captured a human paladin and a noble's daughter." Kael said with annoyance.

"What does that have to do with the request?" Kethan asked puzzled.

"I overheard from the bandit leader that the ones supporting the bandits are nobles. If this is true... it would be very annoying." Kael muttered venomously.

Eglef stared at the still clueless gnome. He sighed, it was his duty as the smarter one among them to explain to his dull companion.

"If the bandit group is supported by _nobles_ we may receive retaliation from them if we wipe out these pests. Though we adventurers are considered neutral, that will not stop personal animosity from the human leaders. If they also spared the paladin, that would mean they have an agenda that includes the city of Stratholme nearby or the paladin could be another important person. We might be dealing with a political conspiracy my dear friend. But that is all an assumption. What do you think leader?" Eglef question the elf.

The elf sighed heavily as he placed a hand to his temples.

"Regardless, we have to rescue all those we can from the camp. We need to take care of the last outpost, from there, we'll move quickly. Can you attack the camp and make a distraction? If you can draw away their attention, I should be able to rescue the hostages they have. Are you able to handle them?" The elf asked.

"Have no worries leader, that's our specialty. We can handle even a thousand of these bandits." Eglef answered with pride. But it was not an exaggeration. Most adventurers who reached the rank of Gold could easily defeat a hundred human bandits. The both of them combined who were still considered to be at the peak of Gold rank were good enough to be able to hold off a thousand.

Gold ranks were considered superhumans, people who had reached the strength beyond the reach of normal beings.

"I estimate their numbers at about a hundred. You don't need to hold back. We can't afford to take captives." Kael explained.

"Sounds good. I always liked taking it head on and don't worry, we're not newbies!" Kethan said with his own manic grin.

Eglef nodded. That was the role that fit them best. They weren't fit to be subtle. They were better off charging from the front with their skillset.

"I agree. We will hold them for you leader." Eglef said.

Kael paused and stared at them.

"Let's go." They followed after Kael.

The first location they arrived at was the outpost they encountered earlier. Kael signaled for them to stay back a little. They watched as Kael nimbly climb up a tree and prepare his bow. He took a stance and placed his arrow on the bow.

The light of the moon shining down on him made Kael appear more like a Night elf than a High elf. Eglef waited with bated breath for Kael's arrows to strike before they could attack.

Deadly arrows whistled in the air, their aim perfect. Each swish of an arrow signaled the death of a man.

The gnome let out a war cry and charged. Eglef watched from the back waiting for an opportunity to show his talent but it never came. Before the gnome could reach the bandits, they were all dead from Kael's arrows.

The elf skillfully taken them all down before they could react to his arrows.

"Damn, so that's what it means to be Mithril ranked." Kethan muttered as they assisted Kael in making sure the perimeter was clear. They didn't want to alert their enemies too early.

"Mithril ranks are those whose name are famous enough they can be called heroes. All Mithril ranked adventurers can be considered armies unto themselves. I am surprised I've never heard of leader Kael until now."

Kael came back with two human women who smelled of dirt, blood and rutting. Even Eglef was disgusted by this. The culture that he grew up with in his tribe made them value the rare female members of their own race. They were respected even if they were not warriors. Not like this.

"Hide here for the moment, we will come back for you." The elf explained gently to the two females who were desperately clinging to him. The elf looked at his two party members for a solution.

Eglef stepped forward.

"I can summon a windwolf spirit to send them back to our camp." Eglef offered.

The elf nodded and soothed the two females while explaining what they had to do. The two hesitantly agreed. Eglef call forth one of his summons and had them carry the two away.

They proceeded towards the main camp.

Just as Kael said, the camp was half-asleep. They were not expecting an attack. Eglef could smell the scent of wine as the wind blew towards their direction. There were a few sentries looking out from atop their makeshift towers.

The camp looked like a small wooden fortress. Better than they expected. But it would still not be enough to defend against his summons.

"May fortune be with you." Eglef muttered.

"Take care. If you can't handle it, you can retreat." Kael told them.

"Don't worry, I got this!" Kethan asserted.

The elf disappeared from sight just like before, a silent hunter.

"Shall we? Partner? Let's not disappoint leader's expectations." Eglef asked.

"Hehe, ready whenever you are! COME AT ME YOU TALL FOLK BASTARDS!" Kethan roared out, his war cry temporarily stunning the bandits watching from their towers. The gnome warrior comically charged at the small fortress gates while shouting with all his worth, his small legs made his charge as fast as a normal person's jog. It would have been a hilarious sight, if the gnome didn't blow away the gates along with a portion of the wall from an empowered swing of his sword. The gnome's short fat sword glowed red with a aura.

The gnome let out another war cry and charged at the stunned observers, bits of wood and dirt raining down from the explosive _entrance_.

"AIYIYIYIYIYIYIYIYIYIYIYYI!"

The bandits who heard the strange war cry froze. They felt the fear death coming for them in the form of a yelling gnome.

Eglef smiled at his friend's antics, even in battle the gnome never failed to amuse.

Eglef relaxed his mind, entering the mindset to call forth the spirits. His summons, his family and companions materialized in their berserk forms. Large Bloodwolves with bulging muscles and snarling teeth were let loose upon the gaping entrance.

_Your summoned creatures are your strength. Let them loose, direct their fury, and unleash their power on your opponents. Do not let yourself sink too deeply into the bond lest you lose yourself. The stronger your summons get, the greater the burden on your mind. Your summons are your summons, you are yourself. Remember that._

The Alpha of the Bloodwolves materialized last. It kneeled down before him, it's eyes shining with intellect and cunning. He got on top of the greater spirit and urged it to go forward. Already, he could see his gnome companion decimating the bandits who dared to approach him.

The gnome looked like a rabid dog let loose more than his own summons. The gnome's movements were deceptively slow because of his size. But he was actually pretty fast.

Eglef remembered today's earlier spar. Kael had dominated the fight entirely. Eglef shook his head and steadied his mind. They were in a battle right now.

From the distance, a fire was spreading throughout camp. Thick smoke provided his summons opportunities to pounce on the unsuspecting bandits. Eglef took a bit of effort to rein in the wolves' aggressive instincts. According to Kael, there were still hostages within the camp. He needed to hold them back in case they attacked the hostages.

It took great amounts of concentration and will to direct this many summons at once.

Eglef directed his summons to work and surround the camp. It was certain some would escape. But most of them would not see the light of day.

From his summons eyes, he saw Kael being followed by a wounded human warrior wielding a blade. Behind them were women and their rear was guarded by another woman who held a spear? No, it was a staff. Eglef turned half his attention towards his summons who were in the area.

Kael had discarded his bow in favor of his dual swords. He watched as Kael easily dodged a blow that was coming from behind him. He tripped the man and cut off his head with the flick of a finger. Another bandit attempted to attack thinking Kael's guard was down after striking down the bandit.

He failed miserably. Kael used his right hand to parry the bandit's strike and blow his defense open, Kael immediately cut down his unguarded opponent with the blade on his left. With enemies dead, they proceeded to advance forward.

Eglef saw this and committed half of his summons to escort the captives out of the fortress. Through his summon, Eglef saw Kael briefly converse with the paladin. Kael assured the paladin that the wolves were friends and summons.

Once he was sure they would be safe, Kael disappeared in a burst of speed back towards the largest building within this small fortress. Every enemy that he encountered fell swiftly to the ground dead or bleeding. Eglef sighed in admiration at the show of martial might and feline grace.

Eglef's attention was drawn back to their current battlefield because of Kethan's constant yelling.

"Not too tall now are you! Come have a taste of my blade!" Kethan roared as he wreaked havoc among the bandits ranks, some of them already fleeing from the fight they could not win. But many of them still attacked, their courage fueled by the alcohol in their system.

"Kethan! We shall rendezvous with the captives. The leader has gone on ahead to fulfill our primary objective." Eglef shouted at his rampaging companion.

"Stop ordering me around! Where are we going!?" The gnome yelled back.

Eglef lightly pat the Alpha and directed him. It wasn't long before they found the captives fending of the bandits attempt to recapture them with his summons assistance.

"More of them!" A bandit shouted before he was bitten by wolf from behind. The rest of the bandits were quickly dealt with by the cooperation between the two groups.

"Is this the rest of you? Are there others within the camp?" Eglef inquired as he approached the warrior leading the captives.

The human warrior looked at him with surprise but answered all the same.

"We don't know. Your elf companion said she would go take a look and went back but I don't think she can make it back without help. There's a warlock back there." The warrior said.

She? Eglef didn't correct the paladin's assumption. Kael did have an androgynous appearance with his cloak covering his body and enemies were still aplenty. They didn't have time discussing such things at the moment.

"Hahaha, I've only seen fight once but I'm sure that guy is far stronger than you pretty boy!" His gnome companion replied for them. The gnome wiped the blood from his helm that was about to go to his eyes.

"My companion is right, you don't have to worry. I'm sure Kael's just taking the time collecting the bandit's heads. Our leader will be here shortly."

No sooner had he spoken when they heard the sound of an explosion and the roar of a dying beast.

"I suggest we get the rest of the non-combatants out of here." Eglef said indicating towards the defenseless women.

"Roooooooaaaaaaaarrr!" Another sound resounded making some of the women faint in fear.

"Let's go." The young paladin grimaced and directed the people behind him.

"We must get them out of here. The smoke is getting worse. It will only get harder to breath and some of the hostages are already fatigued. "Eglef said as he nodded in agreement at the paladin's words.

The made their way out of the burning valley towards their camp ignoring the sound of battle behind them. Eglef was confident in Kael's skills but he still sent a summon to watch over their party leader.

They encountered no resistance as they escaped from the burning encampment. Eglef saw shadows of monsters lurking just outside the bandit fortress. They had been drawn by the smell of blood and sound of fighting.

Some approached but they were deterred by a few spells from the woman guarding their rear. The woman was an ice mage, Eglef noted.

They were able to successfully make their way to the temporary camp without casualties from the roaming monsters and bandit remnants. The bandit's prisoners had all been women, aside from the paladin. There were twelve of them all in varying ages of teenagers to mature women. One feature he also noticed was that they all had beautiful appearances according to human standards.

They arrived shortly at the temporary camp. Eglef advised the women to take some rest. He would have to wait for Kael's to make a judgement. Should they risk it and march for town to avoid further attacks or hunker down the night and defend? He felt relieved when the decision was taken out of his hands.

Kael was currently heading towards them. Eglef's summon was lagging just behind him.

Kael appeared shortly. He had a bag that was dripping with blood slung over his right shoulder while his left hand was holding on to a girl was clinging to his neck. His face was caked in dried blood, the red liquid stained his dark red cloak. He handed the girl to one of the women in the camp.

"What's the situation?" Kael asked as he wiped the blood from his face with a cloth.

"We have a total of fourteen non-combatants and two warriors, the paladin and the ice mage. Most of the women are tired from this ordeal. What do you think? Should we push ahead back to town?" Eglef asked, his own opinion coming out.

Kael looked around the crowded camp. Eglef directed his eyes towards where one of the women was crying and being comforted by another.

"We rest. We can't push them to such a task. It would be easier to defend ourselves in this position than if we were rushing towards town. We risk the same with a monster attack whether we stay or march. I say we allow the women to rest. We'll take turns keeping watch through the night."

Eglef nodded in agreement. The gnome was already restarting the fire they had left.

"Leader, I would advise you to rest. It will be a long day tomorrow and you've been up all night. We can take care of the situation for now." Eglef offered.

He could see Kael about to deny it but his gnome companion chimed in.

"Get some rest. You look like ya need it. We'll be relying on you on tomorrow, I agree with dog-head here." Kethan said aloud.

Eglef could still see the conflict on the elf's face.

"Please trust us, we can do at least this much." Eglef continued.

"Alright, I'll go take a nap. Wake me up if something happens and thanks." The elf relented.

They watched as the elf looked for a place to sleep. It was amusing when a lot of the women offered to 'look' after him.

"Hehe, that guy's earned my respect. Hey Eglef, wanna ask him if he wants to make a party with us? He's doesn't speak much but he's good." The gnome asked his companion.

"I had considered it. He is undoubtedly someone who will etch his name into history. If we can join him, it would put us closer to our goals." Eglef answered, they trudged through the temporary camp and made their way to a location that would allow them to look over the area. They arrived above, on the top of a protruding piece of rock and earth.

"Your dream was to make your people famous, right?" The gnome inquired to make conversation.

"It is to earn recognition for my people, to remove the prejudice that the rest of world stares us with. There is a clear distinction which you obviously fail to understand. But do not worry, I will not abandon you even if the inside of your head grows emptier by the day." The gnoll answered.

"Bah! You're calling me dumb ain't you! I can understand you, y'know. So, do you want to invite him or not?" The small statured man grumbled.

"But yes. I have deliberated the option. I've received news that the Adventurers Guild will begin the exams for Adamantium rank in the next two coming months. It's about time we increased our rank. We can approach leader Kael'drin with the proposition. If he is to take the Adamantium advancement exams which I am sure he could pass, we would have an Adamantium ranked party if he joins us. Kael'drin is more than just skilled, with his appearance which is considered appealing by most humanoid standards, we can easily acquire fame. But..." Eglef finished his long explanation with his words trailing at the end.

"All your yapping is making my head hurt. I don't even get what you're trying to do. Isn't it good as long as we get famous?" Kethan asked.

"That, my friend, is why I am the brains between the two of us." Eglef chuckled at his companion's replies. Kethan was the very definition of a muscle head.

They both had the same goal but for different reasons. Kethan ran away from home because he didn't want to be an inventor like his father and his father's fathers. He wanted to be acknowledged in the vocation he chose, to be a great warrior, for that he wanted to become so famous that all the naysayers would shut up if he ever came home. That's what he bragged about most of the time. It was a selfish reason, but one that fit the eccentric gnome well.

His own reason for seeking fame was to erase the deeply biased imprint that his people were stigmatized for. Gnolls were considered savages and below most of the humanoid races. Some humans even thought of them as monsters. Though this was true to some extent, gnolls ordinarily worshiped brute strength and savagery. He wanted to prove to the world that his people could become something more. His end goal was to change his people. He begun by changing the world's perception of his people.

If the world did not obliquely consider all of them as nothing but stupid and belligerent creatures they were, maybe some of the future generations would be able to escape the mold that was the stereotypical gnoll. He hoped that in time, some gnoll intellectuals would arise by drawing inspiration from him. If there were such characters in gnoll society, he could stop fearing for the future of his people.

It was proven by history that the wiser sentient races survived and thrived. The less intelligent ones died off.

Eglef's own thoughts returned to Kael'drin. He was sure the elf would become someone famous some day. The elf was the most skilled blade master he had ever seen in his life. If they could become the companions of someone who would be called a future Hero, then it would make his dream nearer and within grasp. The party of a Hero would be as notable as the Hero himself.

The gnoll considered and thought of plans while waiting for dawn. Such was his goal and his pride as the most intelligent gnoll to ever live.

* * *

-**V**-

Kael woke up on when the first rays of sunrise peeked over the horizon. He ignored the blue boxes that were at the corner of his eyes and thought of what he had to do at the moment. He'd been forced to disappear last night when some of the women asked him to provide them 'comfort'.

It was not that he considered those women dirty because of the things that happened to them, he was just too tired. It was beyond their control when they were raped and abused by the bandits for amusement. Sylvanas had also allowed (coldly convinced) him to have physical relationship with other women but he was not allowed to form emotional relationships with them.

This was according to her, so that he would never be able to betray her. Kael did not understand it and could not make any sense out of such logic. He just shrugged his shoulders and added it to the collection in his mind about things women did that made no sense.

He made his way through the small camp and spotted some of the women preparing to get up. He looked around and was able to locate his party members looking down on them from a spot nearby that made for an excellent guard post. He waved at them, Kethan saw him and started energetically waving back at him.

Kael moved into action.

He slung his bow and checked his quiver. He needed to hunt some game to feed the people here. The supplies that the adventuring duo had were not enough. They could ask the guild to reimburse them on their costs later but right now he was in need of a direct food supply.

Kael left the camp and made his way through the forest. He sharpened his senses through magical means and lightened his footsteps to avoid alerting his prey. The smell of blood and smoke was still strong even from this far. He made his way to the opposite direction of the previous bandit camp.

He was able to easily locate the critters that were starting to get active with the day. He could not detect any larger prey aside from the horned rabbits and flaming squirrels. He chose the horned rabbits, they were problematic pests to farmers. He was able to get four of the fattest fluffy creatures, their fat a symbol of their crimes against humanity's crops. It would be enough to feed about twenty people for a single meal.

He also collected a few familiar herbs that he could add to the meat.

When he arrived at camp, most the women were awake. He saw the only man they had rescued yesterday awkwardly receiving the attention of the women. He approached two of the women handling the cooking. Fortunately, there was a nearby brook which had also been the bandits water source. He was able to clean and skin the rabbit.

Kael took over the cooking. He skewered the rabbit meat with more fats in them, rubbed them with herbs and spice. He placed the skewers over the fire. He prepared another dish, soup to add balance to the fatty meat. The portion of the meat that contained more bones went into the pot along with all the available ingredients he had at hand.

The drifting smell of barbecued meat drew the attention of the people in the camp. While he waited for the soup to cook, he gathered wood to carve out simple plates and bowls. He sent some of the women to go wash them to at least remove the scent of wood.

"Please form a line." At his words, the crowd of drooling watchers scrambled into the semblance of a line. He distributed the food fairly. At the end of the line was the form of the barely cognizant duo. One of them kept sniffing the air with a trail of saliva already flowing down between his teeth. He provided them their portion and smirked smugly at their over reactions. It was satisfying to watch.

Kethan's large ears which were as big as his head waggled as he devoured his meal. Eglef was barely able to keep himself from outright shoving it into his mouth.

Kael smiled and ate his own food. They mostly ate in silence, a few of them saying praises to him. The pot was cleanly bottomed out at the end of the meal. After they were able to eat and clean out, the small procession formed to head out.

Kael acted as the rearguard, his eyes enabling him to keep an eye out on incoming monsters and shoot them down while also protecting the rear with his sensitive senses.

Kethan and the paladin whose name he didn't know yet lead the party. Eglef was at the middle of the party with his summons at the sides together with the young ice mage. They were able to make it back to Windvale by noon while receiving only three monster attacks which they easily defended against. When they reached town, the guards spotted them and met them halfway. The guards saw the people behind them and readily assisted in handling the wounded and brought them to the town healers.

They said farewell to the women and made their way to the guild.

Kael could feel the fatigue starting to set in as he relaxed his tense nerves. He made his way to the second floor of the guild with his party members following after him. He had to admit they did fairly well. They were competent and had enough combat ability to be promoted to Gold. Unfortunately, this was not Silvermoon where such things were allowed.

The same huge muscled receptionist greeted them when they arrived.

"Good afternoon Guildmaster Fidelius." Eglef politely greeted from behind him.

Kael looked at the man incredulously. Fidelius didn't look like someone who fit the description of Guildmaster, at least in Kael's mind.

"So, you are the Guildmaster, what are you doing handling receptionist work?" Kael asked curiously as the man carefully placed his quill in place. If he thought about it, this man being the Guildmaster of Windvale's Adventurers was not outside the realm of possibility. He knew too much to be a simple receptionist.

"Ah, back so soon? How was the work?" The Guildmaster decided to ignore his question and asked back.

Kael massaged his temples at the headache that was sure to come.

"We annihilated the bandit camp." Kael took the bag from Kethan and placed it in front of the Guildmaster. The man didn't even flinch at the smell of blood coming from the bag.

"We were able to free fourteen women being held captive at the camp. Along with the captives, we had the misfortune of freeing a paladin and a noble woman." Kael grimaced, his discontent at mentioning the latter was obvious. He considered if he should provide the evidence of noble's involvement with the bandits along with the warlock's.

The Guildmaster raised an eyebrow at his words. His mouth set in a line as he waited for him to continue.

"Here." Kael opted to give the evidence and have the guild accept the brunt of the responsibility. He placed a set of papers on top of the counter. These were papers he collected from the warlock's corpse. It contained very incriminating evidence, even the name of some nobles and warlocks working together.

The Guildmaster picked the paper with his fingers and brought up his reading glasses. He squinted and looked through each letter with scrupulous intensity. The lines on the Guildmaster's forehead increased with each letter he read.

After putting down the last letter. The Guildmaster's brows were full of wrinkles making him appear older than usual. He stood up from his creaking chair and beckoned towards them.

"Follow me." The guildmaster announced gravely.

They looked at each other and followed after the hulking man. They made their way to the upper floors until they reached the fourth floor wherein they entered one of the rooms which they assumed was the Guildmaster's office. The man directed them to seat around a table. Once they were all seated, the discussion continued.

"What do you expect us to do?" Kael asked.

"This matter... is not to leave this room." The Guildmaster stared at all their faces.

"You're taking this more seriously than I thought. What's the matter?" Kael asked bluntly.

"Are you all familiar with Dark Cults?" The guildmaster asked.

Kael hesitantly nodded. The two other adventurers sat up straighter at the mention of it.

"Guildmaster... I assume you are thinking this is related to those dangerous demon worshippers, are you?" Eglef asked with a snarl.

"With the evidence you've provided me today, yes. It is related to those guys. I've been having this matter investigated recently by another adventurer but he disappeared and his last known location was the city Stratholme, the headquarters of the Order of the Silver Hand."

Kael tried to remember the contents of the letter he read but he couldn't remember anything that was related to any cult. The Guildmaster didn't seem to be open to revealing more information aside from that.

"What do you expect us to do with that information?" Kael asked unable to hold his curiosity.

"Nothing. For now at least, I'm providing you with the information so that you'll know what you'll get involved with if you want to look further into this. Which I would advise against." The Guildmaster stated. "With that out of the way, here's your reward for the quest."

Kael couldn't help but let out a sigh of relief. The guild was taking over both the responsibility and further investigation of this case. He didn't have to get involved. He didn't want to get involved.

_Maybe my luck is changing for the better?_

Kael lead his companions out of the room and out of the Guild house.

"What do you say we go eat?" Kael said feeling his stomach grumble.

"I am famished and in dire need sustenance. I support the idea." Eglef replied.

"I'm in. Fighting monsters and villains always works up a good appetite." Kethan supported.

He led them towards 'The High Bill', the inn that he was staying at. He proceeded to order food for them while bringing out the pouch that contained their reward. The pouch contained 42 gold coins, twelve gold coins more than their original reward. He divided the coins into three stacks equally.

"Kael'drin, I have a proposal for you." Eglef spoke up seriously.

"What is it?" Kael asked curiously, his first thought was that the gnoll wanted to increase their share of the reward. He was not averse to it, he had selfishly imposed his wishes on his companions going so far as to force them to act as bait during the battle in order for him to rescue the hostages. If they wanted a better part of the reward, he would give it to them. But instead, the gnoll pushed his share back to him.

"I-" Eglef looked at his gnome companion who was about to reach for the coins and slapped his hand away. He then did the same for the gnome's share pushing it to him.

"What?" Kethan stared at the gnoll in annoyance.

Kael watched as a silent conversation seemed to occur between the two.

"We want to join your party permanently." Eglef finally said.

Kael's first reaction was to deny the request. He was used to working alone and he didn't see any need for it. Before he could word his denial. The gnoll spoke.

"We understand you do not want to. You have enough ability to face most enemies alone. I am willing to admit we might even become a burden to you but please hear us out. The main reason that parties are formed are because of lack of ability. However, as you well know, that is no problem to us. The second greatest reason for parties would be when a group of people have the same goal. This is the reason why my diminutive companion and I are together.

"Our current goal is to acquire fame. Kethan, to prove himself to his people and me to prove that our people are not mere beasts. The third reason for parties would be needs. I have noticed you are ignorant to matters that are unrelated to your home. I have deduced that it is your first time outside of Quel'thalas. That is something we can provide you. We are well travelled and I'm proud to say we are one of the few who are as knowledgeable about Lordaeron than even most merchants.

"The fourth reason why parties are formed are because even strength of arms cannot compensate for the need of numbers with certain quests. With the three of us, I dare say that no quest would be beyond us. Would you be willing to form a party with us? You can give us any conditions. We're even willing to receive less than half of the share in any quests we undertake. So... what do you say?" Eglef finished, both of them stared at him expectantly.

Well, not Kethan though. The gnome was wistfully staring at the coins on the table. Not that he could tell since the gnome's height made him appear to be staring right at him.

Kael weighed his options. The gnoll provided him with three good reasons to form a party with them. He was tempted to accept more because of their experience and knowledge as adventurers than the other two reasons.

Wasn't this the perfect opportunity? He thought to himself. There were very few reasons why he couldn't join a party with the two. Most of it was from his habit of working alone and the need for him to hide his abilities. Those reasons were made obsolete in this world.

Eglef was nervously tapping on the table with his claws.

"I don't really have a reason to-" A frown was on Kael's face as he spoke but was interrupted by Eglef.

"We understand. You are not used to us yet so how about taking another quest so that we can prove we are worth your time." Eglef said with determination to see it through the end.

"Wait." Kael raised his hands. "Let me finish first. I accept your proposal. I don't really have a reason to say no and you've raised some good points. I have lesser experience as an adventurer outside of home and in the future I might need others to work with. I might as well start with you two."

Eglef's grin stretched wide enough to reach his ears and the gnome stared at the gold coins sadly.

"So to celebrate! Let's drink enough to get us drunk for a week!" The gnome offered his eyes on the alluring yellow cylindrical metal pieces. Kael smiled at the gnome's blatant desire.

"Ok, let's drink to that." Kael acquired.

The gnome laughed with glee and run towards the innkeeper to ask for a barrel of wine.

"Is that really wise, leader? If you let that wine sink get drunk, we might not be able to go out tomorrow." Eglef asked.

"We're resting tomorrow. I also need to get some arrows. It would also be good if you can look for one more member for our party if possible. A healer would be good, or someone knowledgeable on standard arcane magic. And here," Kael placed all the gold coins back on the pouch," I think it would be better if you hold our team's finances. I'm not really good with managing money." Kael said as he gave the pouch to Eglef.

He was good with earning money and being thrifty but that didn't mean he knew where to find the best deals and how to haggle like a merchant.

"But leader... this is..." Eglef stared at him wide eyed, his palms holding the pouch.

"And stop calling me leader. Call me Kael or Kael'drin. I'm also fine with Archer." Kael stated.

"I will not betray your trust lead- I mean, Kael'drin." Eglef said with sincerity, his head bowed down in deference.

"I'll trust you Eglef. Now let's go join Kethan before he drowns on that barrel." Kael laughed lightly while watching the over the gnome's antics.

The rest of the night was spent drinking while each of them told stories of their own. One thing he learned was that Eglef was a light weight with wine, he got drunk over a single cup. Kethan was able to hold his own better and they ended the drinking session in the middle of the night. Kael was forced to drag his two new party members into their room before he could go to his own.

Kael ignored Xera's prompts with her blue boxes, too tired from the trip to look at them at the moment. He promised to look at them the first thing in the morning.

Kael groggily stepped off his bed that morning expecting a hangover, he looked over himself when he didn't. He could feel the slight changes to his body. It was changing. His muscles were denser, stronger, and more magically attuned. He mused.

[Xera is not happy that Kael is not suffering the consequences of his actions. To amuse Xera, Xera advises Kael to allow Xera control over magical artifact Avalon. Xera should be able to inhibit its healing properties to only cure wounds.]

"Denied. Xera, show me my current progress and anything else I need to know." Kael said without breaking stride. He washed his face from the water filled basin in his room. He grabbed some clothes, put them on and sat down on his bed. Another hand reached out to the hair band on his table. He still hadn't gotten around to cutting his hair. Stray auburn locks trailed down the side of his face, the rest of it caught in the band behind his head.

[**Name**: Kael'drin Hopebringer

**Basic Attributes**:

Agility: 61 (+8)

Intellect: 49 (+4)

Strength: 34 (+4)

Stamina: 48 (+4)

**Class**: None

Level 9

**Active Skills**:

Reinforcement - Lvl Max

Structural Grasp - Lvl Max

**Passive Skills**:

Runes - Lvl 5

Magecraft - Lvl 4

Poison Mastery - Lvl 4

Eye of the Mind - Lvl 1

Hawk Eye - Lvl Max

**Class Skills:**

Intermediate Marksmanship Mastery Lvl 9 (Level Up)

Intermediate Rogue Mastery Lvl 9 (Level Up)

Intermediate Warrior Mastery - Lvl 2 (New)

Sinister Strike - Lvl 2 (Level Up)

Arcane Shot - Lvl 2 (Level Up)

Raptor Strike - Lvl 1 (New)

Concussive Shot - Lvl 1 (New)

Astral Sense - Lvl 1 (New)

Heroic Strike - Lvl 1 (New)

Victory Rush - Lvl 1 (New)

Thunder Clap - Lvl 1 (New)

Stealth - Lvl 4 (New)]

There was a new line that was titled class skills. Kael looked through the list with curiosity. Aside from the Mastery skills being moved, there was a long list of abilities that he 'acquired'.

"What are these class skills?" He asked.

[Class skills works the same way Xera compiled your experiences and information from the system to provide Kael with greater combat ability. In order for Xera to determine Kael's most suitable path, Xera will determine and direct the flow of essences to strengthen Kael's body to his ideal.

With the data gathered before you reach Level 10 or the Foundation Stage, Xera will gather the most appropriate knowledge and fuse it with Kael's current skills and knowledge to create options for Kael's classes. The most probable classes resulting from Kael's recent actions and subconscious desires are the following.

-Rogue

-Hunter

-Warrior]

"So if I'm guessing right, the level of my skills are the indication of what class I'm going to get, is that right?" He asked.

[Affirmative]

Something was missing. He looked at the four classes that were being provided to him.

"Are there more advanced classes than this? You had previously mentioned that Sylvanas has the class of Ranger General, how do I acquire something similar?" He questioned.

[To answer Kael's questions, there are more advanced classes. But the path to them are not open to Kael right now. If Xera forcefully molds Kael's current essence and core into an advanced class prematurely, Kael will cease to exist. Kael's core will lack the essence to create his class, the deficit energy and essence will naturally be taken from Kael's 'soul'. Thus such a method is not viable because it will change Kael irreversibly or kill him.]

Kael shuddered at the explanation. His picture of essence was starting to look more like data and information that made up a creature's existence. Essence might be the _concept_ that living beings were made of. He turned his thoughts towards the more urgent matters.

"Can you tell me more about advancing classes so I can plan ahead then?" He asked.

[Certainly. The possible advanced classes available to Kael in the foreseeable future are the following.

-Ranger - Requires Rogue Lvl 10 and Hunter Lvl 10

-Assassin - Requires Rogue Lvl 20

-Sniper - Requires Hunter Lvl 10 and Intermediate Marksmanship Mastery Lvl 1

-Blademaster - Requires Warrior Lvl 10 and any Intermediate Blade Mastery

-Scout - Requires Rogue Lvl 10, Hunter Lvl 10 and Stealth Lvl Max.

...

...

-Dragonslayer - Requires Total Level of 50 and acquire the title Dragon Slayer

-Demon Hunter - Requires Total Level 90, ? and Astral Sense

-Demon Slayer - Requires Demon Hunter Lvl 50

-? -Requires Lvl 20 in any class, ?, ?, ?, 3 Unique Title and a Unique Skill]

He looked through the long list available to him and noted that the further down he went, the harder the requirements were. The harder requirements also seemed to provide a better classes. There were also a few classes with obscured titles and requirements. He looked towards the last Class in the list. He had an odd feeling that he didn't want that class based solely on its title. But this class had one of the greatest requirements. From his frequent use of _Appraise_ on people, he had learned that Unique Skills were not as common as he thought.

His thoughts were interrupted when he heard a knock on the door. He grabbed his cloak out of habit and put it on. He went towards the door and opened it.

The people outside his door were not who he had been expecting. He rudely shut the door and went towards the window. He had earned an appreciation for windows recently. Handy things they were. Windows were openings in the wall or the roof of a building that allow people to see outside and get outside. The latter being more of frequent use than he would have liked.

"Meh. Fuck it." Kael muttered and jumped down from the second floor.

* * *

-**VI**-

A man was currently running through the slums. The dingy smell of piss, shit and blood mixed together to create putrid smell that discouraged most people from approaching the area. But it didn't stop the man who was carefully slipping through the slum's shadows.

He stopped at one of the shacks lining the area. He knocked twice on the door, paused and knocked rapidly thrice. The door opened slightly to reveal a face between the cracks.

"What is it?" The raspy voice of a man was heard.

"I'm here for your services." The man shifted uncomfortably on his feet at the stare he was receiving.

"Get in." The door opened to reveal a decrepit old man leaning on a jeweled staff.

The man went in, the door behind him closing automatically.

"Who is your contact? Where are you going?" The old man asked.

"Viscount Thorne's home" The man quickly replied and brought out a pouch. He tossed the coins to the old codger.

The old man merely nodded after weighing the pouch in his hands and directed the man towards the center of the glyph covered floor.

A short while later, the man was within the Viscount's home. He quickly moved to his objective, his message was urgent. He called out towards one of the servants in the house and was brought to Viscount Thorne's library. He found the noble sitting on a chair while enjoying a cup of wine in front of the window.

The man quickly kneeled down.

"What is it Cadius? Since when did Volkmer have any interest in my matters?" The noble said with disinterest.

"M-milord, Sir Volkmer is dead."

The palpable silence that followed made the man very uncomfortable. A cold hand reached down on the back of his neck making him shiver.

"_Tell me, Cadius. How are you alive when your master is dead? Who killed my brother?_" The noble's voice turned cold and murderous.

The temperature of the room dropped with every second. The man unconsciously shivered as he felt scales touch his cheek. But he dared not look up.

"I-it w-was adventurers milord!" The man replied quickly afraid that a delay in his answer would cost him his life.

"_Oh_?_ Mere adventurer's were able to kill him when not even Uther the Lightbringer was able to? What farce is this Cadius? I don't like liars... and you know what I do to liars." _The noble's reverberating voice echoed in Cadius' ears.

"Milord! I'm not lying! It was an elf, a gnome and a gnoll!" Cadius burst out.

Instead, a scaled tail wrapped around Cadius neck and strangled him. Cadius stared in fear at the demon in front of him. Massive horns grew out of its head forming a crown of sorts. Its skin was red and its face was twisted into a hideous snarl.

"_Do you think this is a joke, Cadius? An elf, a gnome and a gnoll? I am not amused Cadius?_" Count Thorne said behind the demon as he ordered it to slowly choke the life out of the man.

"Gukhh! GukH! M-milord! Iz trues!" Cadius choked out in an attempt to appease the noble.

The noble watched with disinterest as the man struggled in his grip. Slowly, the life was choked out of the man. As if in a sign of rebellion, the man's bowels loosened and his bladder was let loose as the last of his life was drained from him.

The demon threw the body as far away from him as possible but the stench remained. The noble ignored the dead man and went back to his position by the window. With a snap of his fingers, the demon disappeared. Instead of reading, the noble sat on his chair with his hands under his chin.

"_Pathetic scum have done him in? They are unworthy of my presence but I must avenge that sorry excuse sack of flesh lest the other nobles think me weak. I will make them suffer as I devour their very souls..." _The noble's smile combined with his demonic visage to create a terrifying image. The demon acquired the memories that he required, he saw in his mind the faces of those he would have to kill. One in particular interested him, the face of an auburn haired elf.

The noble picked up a bell that was near his reading table and rang it. Moments later the noble heard a knock on the door and a servant entered the room. The servant was mute, a slave who was trained only to obey.

The servant wisely kept his head down while entering the room.

"Get me a messenger for Alterac." The servant bowed his head and complied.

The noble stared idly at the disgusting corpse. There would be more death to come. Cadmius was merely one of those who were trampled before the true conflict began.

* * *

-**VII**-

_All beings have a 'vessel of essence', potential. I have come to the conclusion that the substance known as essence are the amalgamation of experience, magical energy and soul fragments. This essence exists in all creatures, undead, demons or otherwise. The greater a creature's essence, more powerful they are. Everything and everyone absorbs essence to become stronger. Of course, this also means that there is a limit to what every creature can absorb._

_All beings have a limit on the essence they can absorb. I call this the Level Threshold/Limit. Very few creatures have a Level Limit that exceeds the hundreds. Rarer still are the creatures able to increase the size of their vessels or increase their Level Limit through 'natural' means. The Level Limit might be one of the reasons why elves' who are known for their long lives are not impossibly stronger than other races. _

_Creatures such as dragons have larger vessels in general. Humans have an average Level Limit of fifty in comparison to a dragon's average limit that exceeds a hundred._

_Once a creature has filled its vessel to the limit, incredible measures are required to expand their vessels. According to Xera's records, various means are usable to increase a person's essence vessel. Some of such methods are demonification, undeadfication and/or overcoming great obstacles. _

_The last option though it seems the safest is not the easiest. The total number of people who have been able to expand their essence vessel through this method number no more than a hundred in all the history of Azeroth. All of them have achieved feats worthy of being written down in history._

_The method of accepting the energies of the Twisted Nether to expand a person's vessels have been far more common through out history. Most sentient beings who seek power turn to demons who are infected with fel energies from the Twisted Nether. Though a person's vessel may expand in this manner, they also become more susceptible to taking in the negative energies of the world turning them 'evil'. _

_The other unwelcome method of obtaining 'power' is turning to necromancy. Though results differ, System Xera was able to record beings whose vessels have expanded through this method. One such person would be the famous Arthas Menethil. Mortals who succumb to the lure of power when blocked by the Level Limit barrier have come up with various 'shortcuts' to become more powerful. _

_But the natural means of breaking through one's limits have always been proven to be the superior method. In recent times, those who have relied on assistance to break the Level Limit have always been weaker than those who obtained power with their own hands._

_As the current representative of the holder of Potential, I do not have a limit. That is not quite the full truth. We who have inherited this power from the first Guardian have limits so vast we have not been able to fill even a single percent of our vessels. Nevertheless, we are considered Monsters. Gods. Demonlords. To future Guardians who will take ahold of this power, march onwards. You are the embodiment of Potential. Do not hesitate and take the step. But know this, with great power comes the heaviest of responsibilities. Should you stray from the righteous path... beware of the God that sleeps within the moon of Azeroth._

-Message from the Inheritor of the 'Armory of Heroes' recorded by Xera to be passed on to the generation of to come.

* * *

Note:

Was suffering from stress when I wrote this... so much of the chapter also suffered, lol. It's much harder trying to rewrite a scene than writing a new one. I was forced to delete Kael's POV on the bandit raid because I didn't find it satisfactory, there was supposed to be a scene when he fought the warlock. But it was scrapped. To make up for this, I've written an action scene on the next chap and the one after that. Sorry 'bout that guys.

For Arthas situation with Kael? I have nothing against bisexuals but I just couldn't pass up on the joke. Lols. Arthas dropping the soap? 😂😂😂

So the class system that the Kael has is based on Final Fantasy, Warcraft and the game elements of a novel I've forgotten the title of. I'm planning on fleshing out each character little by little each chapter. As a bonus to those that read the notes, I'll accept suggestions for party members.

I've already got six members accounted for and need two or maybe four more members for the party. I want them to have a final total of nine or eleven members. Party members that I've planned for to avoid repeatitions are:

-Gnome Warrior (Kethan Battlemaster)

-Gnoll Summoner and kinda Shaman(Eglef Gnawcrest)

-Tauren Rogue (We gotta have one of this!)

-Nightelf Demonhunter

-Dwarf Berserker(If you've been payin' attntion, ya'll know who this is)

-Human Mage(She'll be the most 'normal' member of the party, she's also a canon character, she already made an appearance on this chapter)

So the classes missing are...

Paladin

Warlock

Monk

Priest

Death Knight (I'm hesitant whether to continue with my plans for the death knight so I'm putting this here.)

Now to answer some reviews. (I can't really answer all of 'em cause it would take up a large ratio of the chapter. I hate it when you thought it was more down there but it was fcking lie... there was nothing there but notes, lol)

**Nyanmato: **One of the betareaders who read through my drafts told me to avoid it and I pretty much don't want it either so the Game Elements will only pretty much show his progress.

**Sawtooth44: **Thanks for pointing the error, got around to fixing it.

**Sganovik: **Most of the plans I had for slowly building the romance between them was actually written out but it was scrapped. It supposed to be placed before the time skip but... shit happened and I deleted it. My attempts at building the romance in a small part the chapter was awkward and subpar at best. More of a reason was because I'm honestly rushing it and to make sure it goes according to the plot map I made. I'll 'try' my best on the upcoming chapters to offset this though.

**EddyQ: **Fixed that too. thanks.

**Ragnas Bredvolts: **Not to say that Kael/EMIYA fully trusts him. But everything was just adding up he didn't have a reason 'not' to believe it. Well, EMIYA is a pragmatic realist bastard though, so Kael still has some wariness towards it.

**DarkElucidator: **Trivia(False?): Gnoll language involves a lot of barking and snarling. So they usually observe who they are speaking with and how they move their jaws and teeth. There's a distinct movement on the jaws when saying words and an intonation to words that their ears are able to pick up.

**Primordial Inscriptor Z-09: **I haven't actually played WoW in a long time so I'd be kinda confused on all the updates and changes but answer your question... I'm not going for a specific build though...

Because I'm updating early, my releases will probably change to Thursdays(PST) instead of Sundays.

Thanks for reading. See you next chapter.


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: I don't own Warcraft or F/SN and any related franchise. Derp

This chapter was beta'ed by **Bloody Hero** who did awesome work making it far better than what I've written. Read and enjoy.

And don't forget to leave a review or something. Before I forget, I'm probably slowing down chapter releases sometime around two weeks from now. So my chapter might come out at 10 to two weeks interval.

* * *

**-I-**

Kael had to keep himself from grimacing at his current situation. As things stood he was seated at a table, and to the side of him was the Guildmaster who was watching over the proceedings. This entire situation taking place in the confines of the latter's office. Kael couldn't help but direct a vicious glare toward Guildmaster Fidelius for what the man had done.

The traitor had not just betrayed him; but it was his setup of events that had caught Kael so flatfooted and unprepared. Kael subtly scanned around the room for a means of escape while maintaining a neutral expression. But his eyes betrayed him; or rather he supposed his thoughts did anyway.

[Xera advises Kael to stop being a child and establish a cordial relationship with Prince Arthas and Princess Jaina. They are essential to the future of Azeroth.]

Kael tried very much not to glare at the blue box.

'_This is your fault somehow isn't it?'_

[Affirmative. This is both Kael's as much as Xera's fault. His title as a Guardian of Azeroth has positively guided him towards this meeting. How fun!~]

The Guildmaster cleared his throat in an attempt to dispel the awkward atmosphere, he was thoroughly getting more and more uncomfortable as the Mithril ranked adventurer glared at him.

Kael finally relented and spoke.

"So how can I help you Prince Arthas?" Kael asked neutrally. He didn't know that the young paladin he had rescued was a prince, furthermore he was the Crown Prince of the Kingdom of Lordaeron at that.

"Okay! Arthas wants to train under you." The young woman at the Prince's side burst out.

"Jaina-" Arthas tried to speak up but was interrupted again.

"And he also has a crush on you!" Kael was momentarily taken aback as he mechanically turned his head towards the blushing male. The Prince was smiling stiffly while trying to quell his embarrassment.

A loud resounding slap was heard across the room as Kael face palmed. Kael remembered how the Prince was carrying a bouquet of flowers as he knocked on his door this morning. His eye twitching at the recollection, now fully understanding what it meant and it not just being simple sign of gratitude aimed at him.

"Pffffft! Kuhuhuhem." The Guildmaster struggled to contain himself. Kael directed another glare at the man but this time, it was full of a massive amount of killing intent that would normally suffocate those in the room if he were to let it. However, this served to be the final nail in coffin. His reaction had the opposite effect on the man than he intended, the Guildmaster being entirely too amused by whole situation that just happened.

"UGAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! A GIRL! GAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHA! I CAN'T BREATH! HAHAHAHAHAHAHA! MUST! HAHAHAHA! BREATH! HAHAHAHAHA!" The Guildmaster couldn't take it anymore and let out his laughter as he rolled on the floor laughing losing all decorum in the process.

"HAHAHAHA! GAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"

Kael deftly grabbed the knives lining his pockets and threw them at the man who evaded them while still laughing with a roll causing Kael's eye to twitch yet again.

'_I don't want to deal with this kind of shit this early in the morning! What the fuu-'_

Kael groaned into his palms. He didn't like how this day was starting and he knew it could only get worse from here.

[Xera advises Kael to calm down. His increased heart rate and blood pressure indicates-]

'_I am calm damn it!'_

The former Counter Guardian felt the world was somehow trying to make a joke out of him. Kael could not take it anymore and was about to get the fuck out of this nonsense when the Prince spoke up again.

"Regardless of all that happened just now, I would still like to hire you as a trainer." The Prince said while looking at his face, Kael noted impassively that the Prince did not deny Jaina's previous words. He could only sigh in frustration and attempt to clear things up.

"Okay, first... let me say this to clear things up. I. Am. A. Man!" Kael said enunciating each and every word of his last sentence.

"Wait. That can't be right! Are you sure you're not a girl?" Jaina asked both shocked and curiously.

The bare threads of Kael's sanity were slowly slipping away as this conversation continued. He had **never **been questioned about his sexuality or even his masculinity before. It was a slap to the face when he heard it the first time. Kael cursed all that was holy and vile at once as he resolved to castrate his sperm donor in the future. He needed something, or someone, to blame for this shit as he was not taking responsibility for it. The perfect target for this was his father, who shared his genes with him.

This would eventually lead to an epic showdown between father and son in the not so distant future, but that was a tale for another time.

"I am a man, Princess." Kael replied coolly to the young woman. "And I don't have the time nor the motivation to train someone right now." Kael said darkly and walked out of the room. He made his way out of the Guild building and into the streets distancing himself from them.

[Xera advises Kael to take it like a girl- err man and get back in there.]

He disregarded Xera's prompts and waved away the blue boxes to get them out of his face. He felt annoyed by Xera's not so subtle jab at his masculinity and proceeded to ignore her.

Kael knew he was acting immaturely but he couldn't stop his body from taking action. He allowed his instincts to take over and lead him back to the inn.

"You seem to be in a bad mood leader Kael." Eglef spoke up from a table as he noticed him entering the dining area. "So what has required your presence at the guild?"

"Nothing important." Kael muttered, his mood still not recovered from the earlier ordeal.

"Uhm, Mr. Elf sir?" A girl's voice called out to him.

Kael turned towards the young woman who called him. He recognized the girl, she was the waitress he had spoken to a few days ago before he set out to take care of the bandit quest. The girl squeaked out cutely when Kael's eyes turned to her.

"What is it?" He asked as he tried to avoid letting his earlier annoyance show on his face or tone.

"Uh, my dad agreed to allow you to cook in his kitchen. Uhm, he also said as long as you clean after yourself and prepare your own ingredients or pay for it, it's alright." The girl said and ran off.

Kael's mood instantly brightened at the news. His steps grew lighter as he went back to his room to collect some of the things he had prepared before hand. He checked through the rations he had previously packed and hadn't had the opportunity to cook yet. After looking through his things he took out a jar from his pack that contained meat that was tightly preserved, heavily spiced, and completely marinated in herbs. With the jar in hand he made his way back.

He hummed a tune as he moved through the inn's kitchen. He received a few curious stares but he ignored them in favor of enjoying the activity he was currently doing. He hadn't cooked food in a proper kitchen for more than a month and it was doing wonders for his mood.

He looked through the inn's pantry and chose the freshest vegetables he could find. With movements that had a certain efficient flair to them, he processed the vegetables and added them to the boiling pot.

The savory scent of his cooking did not go unnoticed. A few guests were looking through the kitchen door along with some of the staff of the inn. They watched as the elf seemed to dance through the kitchen, his face wearing a beautiful expression that would charm anyone of either gender.

The mouth watering sight and smell of cured and marinated meat being turned in the fire, coupled with the aroma of the sweet gentle thick soup, also lured in a certain duo that recently attempted to negotiate with the elf. However, both were instead entranced by what they saw.

When the food was all finally cooked, Kael snapped out of his happy daze. He prepared a bowl of soup along with the servings of the roasted meat dish.

One of the inn's guests, a merchant who was staying in the town for a few days, could no longer hold himself back and spoke up.

"Is that for sale?" The portly man asked.

Kael wanted to say no but the pleading gaze from the hungry onlookers put him in a quandary. He couldn't just say yes due to most of the ingredients being owned by the inn. It would be wrong to deprive them of their stocked pantry even if he could pay it later, yet to outright say no to the hungry guests…

Kael looked through the faces of the crowd only to find the inn owner among them, who apparently was nodding fervently in approval while drooling.

"Y-yes?" Kael couldn't stop himself from saying and being slightly taken aback because of the near obsessed looks on the owner's and everyones faces.

A cheer went out all around with his reply. Everyone on the door scrambled to be the first to have a taste. They were pushing, pulling, and shoving each other to quickly grab a hold of plate of meat or bowl of soup. Various voices bickering throughout the process.

"Hey me first! You scum!"

"That's mine!"

"I was here first! Get your hands off that plate!"

"This was prepared by my waifu! Fuck off you normies!"

That last line definitely was out of place. But first, he needed to have a semblance of order before the situation spiraled completely out of control and into a riot.

"**Get in a line**." At Kael's words which brook no room for argument, the crowd quickly arranged themselves into a semblance of a line. He would not tolerate any violence to taint the sacred territory of the kitchen.

An hour later, a thoroughly satisfied Kael was eating his own meal while enjoying the reaction on the various people's faces that ate his dishes. The joy of a chef was always a customer's satisfaction after all. His mood was good enough that he was even tolerating the two members of nobility who were sitting across him.

"How can meat taste this good?! Oooh, the meat is melting in my mouth while the spices bring out and enhance the flavor!" The young woman was commentating with each bite while the young paladin beside her was nodding with agreement at every word she said. "I've decided! I don't care if you're a girl! Please marry me so that I may have a taste of heaven for the rest of my life!" The boisterous girl exclaimed seriously.

Kael's party members who were seated at the same table chuckled at her declaration but avoided taking their eyes off their respective plate. The gnome and the gnoll were shoveling the delicious food into their mouths all while eyeing the other's plate. A moment of carelessness would result in disaster, they both thought, as they mentally thought of ways to deprive the other of their food. Both friends seeking any chance to get one more mouthwatering bite for themselves.

After their appetites were sated, their throats slaked, and the war over food between the gnoll and the gnome finished. The people at the table relaxed basking in the afterglow of the meal.

"Damn! That was best meat I've ever tasted!" The gnome said while letting out a burp.

"Indeed, I must say how absolutely divine. Your cooking has transcended unreachable heights Kael." The gnoll commented.

"Yeah! It was the best. Not even the chefs at Dalaran could cook something close to this." The young woman added.

The paladin dared not say a word but he still showed agreement by nodding his head in delight.

"You're an adventurer right? How about I hire you as my cook instead?" The princess asked.

Kael observed the woman before him; he noted that the princess didn't quite act like a typical noble. She seemed more like an outgoing and friendly person to Kael. She didn't have the bearing that Prince Arthas had or the grace that Sylvanas possessed in the presence of others. She was more akin to a normal albeit lively girl who just happened to be born into a royal lineage.

"Sorry, I can't really do that even if I wanted to. There are a lot of things that need to be done before I can settle down and do something like that." Kael replied. For a moment the girl appeared sad, but it quickly passed and she became upbeat again.

"Hey. Sorry about earlier for calling you a girl. By the way, my name is Jaina and this is Arthas! Thanks a lot for helping us out back in the bandit camp, we couldn't have made it out without your help. Well, we could but..." Jaina said before trailing off.

"It's no problem. It's not wrong to help the people in front you." Kael replied by reflex. "As for your request, "he leveled a stare at the Prince", I'm sorry but I can not accept you as a student or your feelings, your highness. And I'm very sure some member's of your order are already on the way to retrieve you."

The Prince flinched at his gaze and looked away.

"Yeah, about that, I'm sure Uther would be really angry right now Arthas." Jaina said absently.

"T-that's I must have you! I mean- I need a reason to have gone here. So please accept my request. I can still tell Uther that I heard about you and wanted to learn your teachings." The Prince pleaded desperately. "I'll do anything; I'll give you an opportunity to owe you a favor, from me, the Crown Prince! So what do you say, Kael?"

"No." Kael said instantly killing off all of Arthas' hope. He didn't want to be the princelings scapegoat. It was not just because he didn't want to deal with this right now; it was also because he didn't have enough knowledge on the political atmosphere of the Kingdom. He wasn't sure if getting close to the Prince would bear good results for him in the future or get him into a whole heap of trouble later. It was better to stay as a neutral party for now lest his activities be hindered in some way or form later on.

It was certainly not because he feared for his behind that he said no.

"It's also partially my fault why we ended up there. So please take Arthas' request! I'm also sure my master would be angry with me if he found out about this, so please?" Jaina pleaded with teary eyes.

Honestly he didn't want to do it. However whether it was past or present, he was always a man who had a hard time ignoring someone else's plight. Kael looked at his two party members who were both nodding simultaneously urging him to agree. After a brief moment to think things over he relented.

"Okay." Kael said with a sigh.

"I'll even arrange for you to get a permit for Dalaran's Ruins Dungeon! Wait- okay? You mean you agree?" The princess asked enthusiastically.

"Yes, if it's a favor from you." Kael said while emphasizing the last part. He spared a glance at the paladin expecting him to be angry somehow but he didn't expect to see the image of the Prince with a smile of bliss on his face with a bleeding nose.

Kael's annoyance for the man intensified into outright repulsion. Kael wiped the annoyance from his mind and concentrated back on the current matter at hand.

He didn't mind if the request came from the young woman. At least with her he didn't have to look out for the same level of political bullshit and potentially being stabbed from behind.

"But I have a condition, princess." Kael said with a serious expression.

"What is it?" The woman asked expecting something difficult or incredibly costly. However, she certainly didn't expect to hear the next words coming out of the elf's mouth.

"Teach me about magic." Said Kael.

"Eh? That's it? Are you sure that's all you're going to ask for? Not increase the reward or maybe ask for a rare magical artifact?" Jaina asked.

Kael wasn't sure how widespread or guarded the knowledge on magic for this world was. His experiences with mages, wizards, or any of the magically gifted of this world were scarce. One of the few he knew with knowledge was Coria, but according to Coria, hers was more of a natural talent with magic than any true skill with it. She just did what she did; her manipulation of plants through arcane and mana was instinctual and hard to explain.

"Yes, as long as you can teach me what you know. Is that alright with you?" Kael asked.

"Of course, I've been given three months of break from my studies so I can teach you in that time! Oh yeah, I nearly forgot. Are you alright with moving to Stratholme for the next three months? We can't really stay here because of my agreement with my teacher and Arthas because he's still a trainee in the Knight Order." The young woman said.

Kael turned to his party members. Kethan was picking his teeth and Eglef stared at each other briefly before nodding in silent approval having no problems with the idea.

"It's fine. Coincidentally, it's also because I'm curious about dungeons and Stratholme has one so that should work out fine." Kael replied. "I just want to ask, when are you leaving?"

"About that... we really should have gone already. But if we have you with us, I think it'll be fine." The young woman replied.

"I'll go to the guild to process your request and accept it. Prepare early tomorrow, we'll be travelling to Stratholme at dawn." Kael instructed and stood up from the table. His party members soon followed after him.

"Is it acceptable to you? I was under the impression you would not accept." Eglef said.

"I don't have any set plans for now. It would be good experience for us to travel to Stratholme, as long as you're both fine with it. Do you have any knowledge about these so called dungeons?" Kael asked.

"Oh yes, we have had the opportunity to delve in Stratholme dungeon before. A strange phenomenon it was, or shall I call it an anomaly? The dungeon seems to be a pocket of space that contains its own rules. According to some people, the dungeons are trials given to us by the gods, the Light, or the Spirits. In my opinion, dungeons seem to be _filters_ of the anomalies in time and space. The appearances of dungeons suspiciously coincide with the disappearance of all contacts with the Bronze Dragonflight.

"They say that dungeons are being managed by the missing dragons. Mere speculation but I suspect those rumors have a grain of truth in them. At the very least it is something worth considering."

Kael remembered the book he had been reading, _Tales of Dungeons and Monsters_. The book had been a gift from Lirath and it had taken him approximately three weeks before he could read through it all. It was written by a retired elven adventurer who went back home and settled down. The book detailed the adventurer's experiences and knowledge regarding their travels. Half of the book had discussed the existence known as dungeons.

"Can you prepare our supplies for the trip tomorrow?" Kael asked.

"If you have assigned me that duty, I would not neglect my responsibilities leader." Eglef smiled "Now then, I suppose you'll be heading towards the bowyers? I would advise you to go to the carpenter's first leader. The local carpenters more often than not, take side jobs in crafting arrows. It would be more practical and far less costly if you were to go to them."

Kael muttered a quick thanks in reply and heeded the gnoll's advice. He asked the girl working at the inn for directions and was pointed towards the carpenter's location in the area. The rest of the day was spent preparing supplies and taking a rest before the journey tomorrow.

They set off early the next morning with the young paladin and mage hiring a horse and his party members riding on a summoned wolf spirit just like last time. He had decided to forego acquiring a mount and chose to travel on foot instead. First because he didn't know how to ride a horse or any mount, and secondly because it was good training and he was used to travelling on foot.

The Crown Prince had offered to let him ride with him but the glare he had directed at the Prince killed that notion or any chance of it happening from the young man's head.

He swore by all that was holy he would grow a beard somehow just so he wouldn't ever be mistaken for a female again. That or further develop his muscles. Unfortunately, his body type prevented him from developing any exaggerated muscles like a body builder or large warriors. His body was already thin to begin with, but Kael was still hoping he was just a late bloomer and would hopefully buff up more as he grew into adulthood.

Kael felt the wind on his face as he let down the scarf covering his mouth. The wind blew back his hair as he relaxed and ran with the wind. He let out a carefree laugh, his worldly worries forgotten for the moment.

The sounds of his companions were getting further away with each of his steps. He let his mind drift into nothingness as he let his feet move.

It took them three days to reach the city of Stratholme, the second largest city of the Kingdom and the seat of power of the Knights of the Silverhand. Even from afar, Kael could see the city's high towers. Their current pace was a simple trot as they tread upon the cobbled road.

Fellow travelers could also be seen on the road, either heading towards or from the city. Trouble had briefly encountered them when the guards pointed their weapons at Eglef but it was quickly resolved with a few words from Arthas.

They were met with the sight of a bustling crowd as they entered the city gates. Hawkers cries and merchant's bellowing voices could be heard as armed adventurers traversed the streets. The pungent smell of unwashed bodies, animals, and cooking food floated in the air. Colorful banners were spanned over the buildings.

Arthas directed them towards their destination while happily answering their questions.

"The Adventurer's guild is located at the center of the business district which is on the east side of the city. The market is just down this road if you want to buy any food supplies. Smithies and craftsmen are on the south side of the city. The noble district where we're heading to is also where the Order's headquarters are located. You can stay the night there! I'll make sure there won't be a problem." Arthas said as he guided them.

But Kael wasn't too keen on accepting the man's offer.

"We're happy for your generous offer but I'm afraid we cannot impose on your highness' generosity any further than this." Kael snapped while trying not to sound disrespectful. This man was still a noble, more so the next ruler of this Kingdom he reminded himself.

"If you're not staying there, I can guide you to where I'm staying at. It's a nice inn, they even have baths!" Jaina said while grinning.

"You have my thanks." Kael replied.

"Psst... hey Kael, can ya ask them where the nearby pub is?" The gnome sidled next to him and whispered. "Even better, ask them where we can get some titties!"

Kael tried hard not chuckle in amusement.

"You do have your priorities straight, little man." Eglef snorted but did not disagree.

"Come on. I haven't dipped my weewee in a while. It was months ago when I last got laid. I've got a lot stored up for them lucky honeypots." The gnome said while wagging his brows.

"We'll look around later tonight." Kael appeased the excitable gnome.

"What are you talking about?" Jaina asked as she approached them.

Kael did not break stride and the gnome wisely shut up.

"We were just wondering where the dungeon was princess. My companions have passed through here in the past but they hadn't visited the dungeon." said Kael as he quickly came up with a excuse.

"Oh, I can show you there tomorrow if you want, maybe after your lessons with Arthas?" Kael stiffly nodded after being reminded of that particular part of the deal. He also still had to meet with the princeling's teacher, Uther Lightbringer.

"That would be much appreciated, princess. "Kael answered.

"Can you also call me Jaina. It's weird getting called princess all the time." Jaina requested.

"Okay, Jaina." Kael replied.

"Mmh, that's better. Now let's go, I think Arthas is sulking because you're not talking with him." Jaina teased him with a grin.

They arrived at the Paladin Order's headquarters and were directed towards a guest waiting room. Arthas nervously went out first. Minutes later, he came back with a bruise on his cheek and was calling for him to follow.

He was lead to a sparsely decorated room. The only decoration being the Order's banners hung to the side and a few potted plants. Sitting in a chair while sipping on some tea was the man who Kael assumed was Uther Lightbringer.

Kael's first impression of the paladin was a gentle but wise old man. Uther exuded a familiar aura of charisma, dignity, and power that felt almost similar to that of the King of Knights.

Gray hair and a wrinkled face stared at them.

"Greetings, so you must be the young Prince's friend that he has told me about. I apologize that we cannot welcome you in a more appropriate manner. But please have a seat." The Order's leader said in a firm tone that left no room for argument. He set his eyes on his face, examining it. Kael could not help but notice as the man stared at him in surprise but he passed it off.

"I am Uther Lightbringer, the teacher to this young man here." Uther indicated towards the prince. "My student has told me the reason he travelled to Windvale was to learn some of your teachings with the blade. I'm curious that he would go out to seek one as young as you, adventurer Kael." Uther said while looking at him thoughtfully.

Kael merely stared back not unnerved in the slightest. He had been under far heavier gazes before and there was no malicious intent behind his stare just curiosity.

"I'm merely someone who's learned a few things, Sir Uther. I've agreed to teach Arthas so that he could learn how to defend against someone with my style of fighting." The elf replied.

"Ho, you're quite humble for such a high ranked adventurer. What do you say about joining the Order, young man?" Uther offered with an appraising look.

Kael could not help himself and invoked a skill.

'_Appraise._'

[Uther Lightbringer

Class: Epic Paladin Warrior

Level 79

Titles: First Paladin, Grandmaster of the Silverhand

Race: Human

Description:

A Champion of the Light and founder of the Paladin Knights of the Silverhand, a devout man who has witnessed and lived through two Great Wars. He has participated in the bloodiest of the battles during the Second War and has achieved great feats that have influenced the tide of the war. In recent years, he has remained a stalwart protector of the people. Vanquishing evil wherever it arises, a knight and cleric but more than that, a symbol of hope to his people...]

Kael briefly read through the box that appeared processing what he read. A protector of the people, he could respect that however….

"I apologize Sir Uther, but I'm not a believer of the Light. I believe in the greatness of mortal men not the compassion of gods." Kael replied brazenly.

The Paladin leader let out a laugh at such a reply. He had met very few men who were this heretical yet honestly righteous.

"I cannot turn you away from your beliefs but I must still say that even if you do not follow our path, I hope that you will be able to teach this young man well." Uther said while looking at his student.

"I will do my best." Kael nodded.

"So what do you plan to in this city aside from that?" Uther inquired.

"I and my companions have been curious about the existence of the dungeon. We would like to visit it." Kael replied

"I suppose so. Adventurers have been increasing lately because of the dungeons existence. They are both a blessing and a curse. However be careful within the dungeons, you never know what creatures lurk within its dark halls. But remember it is the trial it provides that makes us stronger." Uther advised.

"I will consider your words and thank you for the advice, Sir Uther."

"I apologize if this may seem rude but can you tell me who your parents are, young man?" The man asked.

"I grew up in an orphanage. I'm sorry but I haven't even seen my parent's faces." Kael replied solemnly, what he said was technically the truth.

"That is..." The old man trailed off a tinge of sorrow present upon his face.

"It is alright Sir Uther, I've accepted it all a long time ago." Kael said.

"You have a firm gaze, young man. May the Light guide you towards thy righteous quest and may evil shy from your presence. I hope that you'll enjoy your stay in the city." The old man chuckled though his discomfort at the earlier faux pass was still visible.

"Thank you Sir." Kael accepted.

Later that evening, Kael was conversing with Eglef who had gone around the city during the day. Their gnome companion was off to the side drinking while attempting to flirt with a busty barmaid.

"So the Adventurer's guild manages this dungeon? "Kael asked while picking at his food.

"Yes, it seems so. I have inquired at the Guild and they were surprisingly forthcoming with the information. Stratholme dungeon is cleared daily by adventurers but casualties always seem to appear despite that. Most of the deaths are from unprepared beginners dreaming of glory and diving in too deep too soon. Otherwise, the dungeon is safe until the tenth floor. They require adventurers to be at least Gold ranked if they wish to delve deeper until the fifteenth floor, but there's no one to regulate things down there resulting in deaths.

"However with our abilities, I suspect we are able enough to reach the last known floor, the twentieth. What is your plans tomorrow leader?" Eglef asked while biting down on the meat on his plate.

"I've got my job with Arthas in the morning. Are you fine with probing the dungeon until I'm free at noon? Sorry about this..." Kael replied.

"Worry not, leader. We were the one who urged you to teach the young man. We should be the ones apologizing. But enough of that, we still have not officially registered as a party at the Guild. What do you suggest we name our party, leader?" The gnoll asked.

"I say Teats and Wine!" The gnome said despondently returning to them, having failed to get himself laid tonight.

"I propose Silver Grand Mages." Eglef added.

Kael shook his head at their answers. The first was because he did not want to get called the Leader of Teats and Wine and the second because it seemed like violating copyrights and was completely unoriginal. That was aside from the fact that they weren't mages anyway.

"How about Blue Knights?" Kael proposed but was shut down immediately.

"You have terrible naming sense leader. We must choose a name that possesses flair to it, a name for us that will appeal to the masses and be remembered in history. A grand name that none will forget!" Eglef passionately said.

They sat there and thought up names they might all agree on but the process didn't go so well. A name would be said by one of them only to be shut down by the other two. This went on for a while until a recent acquaintance appeared before them.

"What are you doing?" Jaina asked from behind them. "Playing a game?" She asked.

"We are thinking up a party name." Kael replied.

"Huh? How about...hmm, Rune stride. It sounds cool, right?" Jaina said.

"No." Kael immediately replied but the look on his companions faces said otherwise. "How'd you even come up with that name?"

"It's because you travel on foot and you use runes?" Jaina said with a smile.

Kael's eyes turned sharp, even if she appeared to be brash and impulsive, she was knowledgeable and observant enough that she noticed his runes.

"I think it's good! Maybe it can even get me laid tonight if I say it, I'm a member of a Mithril rank party Rune stride!'" The gnome muttered. "I like the name." he agreed and proceeded to scamper off to once again try his luck.

"Do you seriously think-"

"Leader, please consider Lady Jaina's advice. I am of the same opinion that it is a good name." Eglef advised.

"Hehe, that's three to one Kael. You're outvoted." Jaina cheerfully celebrated the victory.

"You're not even a member of the party... never mind. We'll go to the Guild first thing in the morning," Kael conceded, he quickly turned to his side to see a hooded man staring at him. When the man noticed he was looking, he quickly made his way out of the area.

Kael wrinkled his nose at what he had just detected. There was a faint smell of chaotic energy wafting off the man. He reminded himself to watch out for the source of that smell as there were faint traces of it all over the city. He had not noticed it the first time because he could not distinguish it from the other scents. But now, he was sure there was something going on in the city.

He remembered Guildmaster Fidelius' words. Someone had been investigating warlock activity here recently but had disappeared. If that were the case, he noted that they'd have to be fairly skilled and equally powerful if they were able to hide here in the headquarters of a force that hunted down such evil.

He doubted they'd be attacked so openly so he made sure to be aware when his party would be divided and alone.

"Hey, Eglef." Kael said, looking at him in thought.

"Make sure you're careful when you explore the dungeon tomorrow. I've read something about the dangers of the dungeon and one of the things they wrote down was adventurers." Kael explained.

"Oh..." The gnoll nodded. "I am quite knowledgeable on the nature of adventurers, leader. Do not worry and go about your own task tomorrow." Eglef said to reassure him.

Kael trusted Eglef to make a good judgment. He was sure that Eglef would make a pragmatic decision to retreat if they were ever put in danger, even if others may think it a bit cowardly to do so.

The next morning, Kael separated from his party members as they headed towards the dungeon while he went to the Paladin Order's headquarters. He was welcomed by the guard who was posted on duty and was lead to the Order's training grounds members of the order were busy practicing. Most the aspiring paladins were males with a few select of them being muscled and large bodied women among them.

When he appeared, the trainees eyes turned to him.

The tired expressions on the male's faces gained an unusual fervor as they redoubled their efforts into their swings. Some of them even took off their upper clothes and were flexing their muscles for show.

Kael stared jealously at their muscles. He sometimes hated that he was born an elf, he would probably never develop muscles like that in his entire life.

The trainees who had mistaken his gaze for something else competed with each other in showing off. Their antics however were soon interrupted by one of the trainers who saw him.

"I presume you are the tutor that trainee Arthas has mentioned?" A middle aged male inquired with a red face.

Kael looking at his appearance assumed that his red face was most likely from the exertion of training or the heat of the sun.

"Yes, can you please lead me to him right now?" Kael stated.

The man straightened his back and puffed out his chest. He glared towards the trainees.

"Put your backs into those swings! Move your asses you slow pokes!" The man shouted at the trainees before turning back to him. He spoke in a gentle and more even tone towards Kael that was probably man's normal tone. "Please follow me, uh, mis-"

"It's Kael, please call me Kael," he said with a smile.

"""OOOOOooooooohhhh!""" The sudden war cry from the trainees startled him as they moved even faster.

They were definitely motivated Kael noted. They must really like training, he thought.

"Kael, shall I lead you to him then?" The man asked.

Kael nodded in acceptance; it was unknowingly a good timing for both the Order and the former Counter Guardian's sanity. Otherwise he would have overheard the following conversation that occurred a few moments after he left which may have very well set him in a destructive rage against the aspiring paladins.

"Did you see the pretty girl? Damn, she was cute." One trainee said.

"Even that damned instructor was putting the moves on her. I hope we get to see her again." Another spoke up wistfully.

"Mine eyes have healed upon gazing at that beautiful visage." A third male spoke up.

"What are you guys talking about? It's not like it's your first time seeing a girl. I'm a woman too y'know." One of the few females present said.

"Huh? You? You're a muscled gorilla! Not a woman. There aren't any women in the barracks and we trainees aren't allowed to go out. I'm regretting becoming a paladin." The first trainee stated while scoffing.

"Yeah, me too. I thought that once we became paladins, the women would start flocking to us. But no such luck… I hope we can be allowed out for an early break next month, I'm starting to get sick at seeing muscular men all the time!"

"You shits! Who're you calling a gorilla!" roared the insulted woman.

Said gorilla grabbed the two of the male trainees and threw them into the others. This quickly devolved into a fistfight that took all morning to disperse.

* * *

-**II**-

Outside the walls of Stratholme, where the slums were located, armed brigands were moving below ground in the tunnels and sewers. A black haired man in the form of Count Thorne was moving among the rabble with distaste clearly visible on his face. A cloth covered his nose as he looked on the gathered men.

There were more of them gathering just outside the city of Stratholme. Lord Thorne had heard news that almost half of the Paladin Order that dwelled in the city were sent out on a bandit extermination quest. The lure that they had set up, though disrupted had still worked. It was a both a fortune and misfortune that they had previously captured the Crown Prince.

Prince Arthas had been able to escape captivity with the help of the adventurers. It was no doubt bad luck that had killed his brother when the adventurers attacked.

Lord Thorne refused to believe that his brother, an infamous Warlock was slain in such an easy manner. The Prince was reported to have been heading towards Windvale to inquire about a Mithril ranked adventurer who was famed for his skill with blades. According to the gathered information, it was this adventurer who had attacked the bandit camp and killed his brother.

No mundane blade was able to wound his brother's demonic summons. What likely happened was that the Blademaster was able to catch the Warlock by surprise; how else could it have happened otherwise it would have been the Blademaster who died. None of it mattered though to the Count right now.

What was important was that because of the Prince's capture by bandits, they had caught the Order's eyes and in consequence, the public's. Resulting in the urgent deployment of the experienced Paladins to prevent chaos and negative rumors by nipping it in the bud, thus half of the Order was out of the city trying to catch an nonexistent threat.

Stratholme would burn tonight.

They would face no resistance; the remainder of the Order was too outnumbered and inexperienced against their amassed forces. The adventurers were not expected to actively join the fight against them. The few who would? They would die. Then soon, the Capital would follow.

The current Kingdom was already weak and only getting weaker.

"How are the preparations from the Cult?" Lord Thorne asked a messenger who had just arrived.

"They have heavily guarded the dungeon, milord. They've already made preparations on the ritual to break the dungeon's gates. They've reported it would break at dusk if they started now." The messenger delivered.

'_All according as planned then_', Lord Thorne thought.

After tonight, he would no longer be a Count. He would become a Duke, the ruler of the northern province of the Kingdom. Perhaps even more than that, he had ambition and cunning after all. No one would be able to stop him. This was just his first step on his path to Kingship.

"Go back and deliver this message, 'Proceed with the plans, there are no disruptions. Failure will not be tolerated.'" Lord Thorne stated.

"Yes milord." The messenger departed at once.

Lord Thorne smiled darkly as he waited for darkness to come.

'_Tonight, it all begins.' _He thought.

All their plans, everything he worked for would come to fruition this night.

* * *

-**III**-

Kael waited anxiously in his room. It had been hours since the agreed upon meeting with his party members. Unable to take it, he stepped outside his room but not before preparing his weapons. He went down the stairs and was about to go to the adventurers guild when he spotted Jaina by chance. He walked towards her with purpose.

Jaina was seated on a table while enjoying some tea and sweets. On the chair beside her was a staff, a magical focal tool. The light of mid noon illuminated the dining room she was in.

Kael took a seat opposite of her.

"I'll be taking a seat if you don't mind." He stated after the fact. "Jaina, have there been any problems in the dungeon?" He asked, probing her for answers.

"Hmm?" Jaina replied with a piece of cake still in her mouth. She lifted the cup of tea and gulped it down to push the food down. "Nothing that I heard of, is there a problem Kael?" She asked.

"I've agreed to meet with my party members a while ago for lunch but they haven't shown up yet. Could there have been a problem I was not aware of that happened this morning?" Kael questioned.

"That... let me think. The only thing I remember was, the portal temporarily malfunctioning a few days ago. But the dungeon fixed it back up and running half an hour later... I don't know if that could've happened again."

"Can you please direct me to where the dungeon is in the city?" Kael asked with impatience, though he had been with his party members for more than a week. He had grown fond of them already, he was not about to let them become dungeon fertilizer if he could help it.

"Let me go with you." The young ice mage said leaving no room for disagreement from him.

"Alright, but please keep close if we are to enter." Kael answered.

"I'm actually really good though. I was just caught that one time with the bandits because of the unexpected surprise attack from behind. Besides I know the dungeon more than you." She said with a pout.

"Yes, little princess. You are so good so please lead the way." Kael stated dryly.

The princess puffed up her cheeks in a pout and went towards the door. Kael soon followed after her in exasperation.

The young woman directed her gaze towards the west side of the city. Heading over they soon arrived at what appeared to be a horizontal golden pool of light that was suspended in an area. Around the 'portal', several merchants and adventurers were either conversing or preparing.

But Kael noticed a group of people off to the side. They seemed to be subtly observing the area unlike the others around them. They were clad in the same mishmash of armor and clothes that other adventurers wore however what set them apart was the _alien_ scent they were emitting. His intuition and experience signaling something was off here.

"Is entrance to the dungeon free?" Kael asked.

"Well, yes-" Jaina answered but was immediately cut off.

"Then let's go, I sense something is about to happen and I want to check it out before whatever it is explodes in our faces." Kael replied.

"Eh?" Jaina asked with a confused look on her face and was about to turn to where he was looking at but was immediately dragged to the portal by Kael.

"Hey! Let go! What's the-" Jaina struggled but one serious glare from Kael silenced her. She complied silently while he dragged her into the glowing portal.

As soon as they entered, Kael let go of her hand and unsheathed his blades. They were in an illuminated hallway with bright gems providing light from the ceiling. At first glance, nothing seemed wrong. But the strong feeling of wrongness and the heavy scent of _alien _and _chaos energy_ set Kael's mind ringing in panic.

"Something is wrong." He said aloud. "Something is very wrong with this dungeon right now." He didn't know how the dungeon normally was since he had never visited one before but his instincts were telling him shit was about to go down. Considering his luck, he definitely trusted it would.

"Yeah... even from here I can sense fel magic and it's too strong to be just from a single warlock adventurer. This is a group of them at least." Jaina muttered as she readied her staff.

"Let me lead the way. I'm sensitive to magic and I can sense where this is coming from." Kael stated.

"Shouldn't we go back and report this first? I don't want to make the same mistakes as last time..." Jaina added hesitantly.

Kael shook his head.

"No, I sense that if we go back now we won't have the time to stop whatever is about to happen." Kael paused in thought. He looked at the young woman but was cut off before he could speak.

"No! I'm not leaving..." Jaina said but her conviction wilted under his intense gaze.

"Just this once, please listen to me, Jaina. You can also count it as my favor. You still owe me one for accepting the quest from Arthas. Please go to the Adventurer's Guild and report what is happening here." He gently told her.

"But what about you?" Jaina asked clearly concerned for him.

"I can take care of my self. Besides, you haven't even started with your promise yet. You said you'll teach me about magic right?" Kael asked with a light smile.

"Yeah." She let out a sigh. "Okay, I'll go back. But please be careful Kael. You're one of the very few people I can call a friend." She smiled back at him.

"Hahaha, gladly princess, I'll be careful. Don't worry; I've been through worse situations than this." He quipped and turned to make his way deeper into the dungeon.

He heard Jaina's light footsteps heading out of the dungeon before he made his way.

"**ᚡᚨᚾᛁᛋᚺ**."

"**ᛋᚺᚨᛞᛟᚹ**."

He activated the inscribed runes on his armor for '_Vanish_' to lessen his presence and another rune for '_Shadow_' to obscure his form. What remained was a vague shadowy silhouette that would not register in a normal person's field of vision.

Kael silently made his way through the dungeon's wide hallways. The ceiling was more than twenty five feet high, massive Greek like pillars supported it. He ignored the various adventurers and monsters he met on the way focusing on the task he set out for.

The gems that lit the dungeon were spread out in a way that there would always be shadows at certain places. '_A perfect place for an ambush' _he thought. Kael did not know how far he ran or how many corridors he crossed but the scent was only getting more overpowering the deeper he went.

He actively circulated magic through his body to make sure he wasn't caught unaware.

When he finally reached the source of it all, what appeared at the end the hallway surprised him.

A dragon was chained to the ground and beneath it numerous ritualistic drawings and symbols were inscribed. The dragon actively struggling from its restraints and letting out roars that shook the chamber. It was small one, only thrice the size of a horse but still it had enough strength to make minor vibrations in the ground with its movements.

Kael surveyed the area. Five mages were chanting around the dragon. Aside from them, there were six other people within the room. He analyzed the enemies he would face; three swordsmen, two mages and an archer. An annoying combination if he was caught by them. If they were able to set up their battle formation and effectively work together, they would potentially be able to stall him possibly allowing the mages to finish the ritual. He needed to deal with this fast. He didn't know if the five mages would interrupt their own ritual and join in the fight if he showed up but it was better to deal with them quickly regardless.

Without revealing himself, Kael placed his blades on the ground and unslung his bow. He didn't know if they had some way to detect him or protect themselves from an ambush but it was always better to be cautious and maintain a safe distance until he attacked.

He took an arrow aiming it at the mage while positioning himself near the other one. He held his breath and counted down.

Upon reaching zero, he let the arrow fly immediately swapping his bow in favor of his blades. Not waiting to see the arrow hit, he was already upon the other mage. Leaping into the air, he decapitated the second mage and headed for the archer while ignoring the spurt of blood behind him.

One of the warriors was startled by his sudden appearance but immediately reacted by raising his weapons. It was futile; Kael slipped to the side out of the warrior's sight and appeared at the archer's side cutting through him. The archer's upper body slid off and plopped down on the ground. The first warrior charged at him with his sword raised over his head. Kael did the same and sliced the warrior from his shoulders to his torso in a single slash.

The warrior stared at him in confusion right till the moment he died.

Kael turned towards the last warrior who was too stunned to react from what had just happened. He cut him down without mercy. The mages who were performing the ritual had not reacted at all to the brief battle. If that was the case, most likely they were unable to stop the ritual they were working on once casted. It would explain why the others he just dealt with were there and why they didn't do anything to help stop him. Kael's steps were directed towards the group conducting the ritual.

Defenseless as they were, the mages were sitting ducks as he cut their heads off one by one. It took less than twenty seconds to execute them all.

With the death of the last mage, the chain that bound the dragon broke with little effort. Kael stared curiously at the device they had used to bind it. The black barbed chains had come from inside a small jar it seemed.

"_Who are you? What happened to me?" _The dragon's decidedly male voice echoed in his mind.

The dragon appeared to be docile. It made no other movement aside from lifting itself off the ground. Its bronze scales glinted from the glow of the dungeons light.

"I don't know what happened to you but I knew those warlocks were about to use you for something. Who are you?" Kael asked.

"_I am the Tezardomu, guardian and manager of this space that you mortal races call dungeons. I had been going about my duties when these strange chains appeared out of nowhere capturing me and dragging me upon this place._" The dragon replied.

"Do you remember anything that happened? What they had been doing?" Kael asked.

"_I cannot remember anything. I apologize, but I must return to my duties at once before this space is unraveled by time and space! Please return to this place at a later date, until then please find a way out of here." _The dragon disappeared in flash of light leaving Kael to stare at the corpses left behind by his recent handiwork.

Then the dungeon began to shake violently. Kael stared at the concentric figures and geometric shapes on the ground. He moved back slowly as they lit up in a bloody red light. A message box soon appeared to in front of him.

[Xera concludes that the ritual was used to get the monsters spawned from the dungeon out into the city. The ritual has not been fully completed but it has forcefully taken the remaining fel energy from the dead warlocks and is using it as a blunt force attempt to break the dungeon's gates. There is a 50% chance of this succeeding. Xera advises Kael to leave the dungeon immediately.]

"What?! Explain Xera!" Kael shouted over the rumbling of the dungeon while running at full speed out of the place.

[The dungeon is correcting itself. It does not have enough energy to delicately repair by detail so instead it is restarting everything.]

"Fuck!" Kael cursed. This whole situation escalated into full FUBAR! Quickly he made his way through the floors until he was finally able to make it out, only to be met with the sight of the city burning in flames. What bothered him further was the dark night sky. He should have only been gone for not more than an hour or two yet it was already dark. At least there weren't any monsters spawning from the portal behind him as well.

Kael muttered another curse and shot an arrow at an eyeless horned reptilian alien dog chasing a weaponless adventurer who was screaming his lungs out. An explosion could be heard further inside the city.

People who weren't fighting were scrambling for places to hide.

He grabbed a panicking man from the streets and asked him a question.

"What's happening!?"

"Hell if I know! Let go of me!" The man said and escaped from his grasp.

Kael cursed again, the only options he had were to head towards the Adventurer's Guild or go to where the explosion happened. No doubt it was where things were likely to be centered on, which just so happened to be in the direction where the Order's headquarters was located as he recalled.

_'It's better to get a vantage point of the city and get a sense of what's happening_.'

He decided to scale up a building and look down at the view from above. From there, he was able to locate the highest building in the area aside from the Paladin towers, that being the Merchant Guild's building. With a heavy sigh he grabbed his bow and got to work after arriving at his chosen point. Luckily he could see most of the city from his location. Seeing the mass od invaders down below.

His sight was clear as day under the faint light of the moon in the sky above as he took aim.

He ignored the shocked and confused looks on the adventurers and the guards faces as his arrows hit upon the enemies they were fighting.

Kael travelled over the rooftops slowly making his way towards the Knight Order headquarters while killing all the enemies in his sight and saving whoever he could. There was no lack of number of enemies. From ragtag bunch of armed bandits to heavily armed mercenaries, however he noted whoever was instigating this attack lacked capable personnel to lead it. While there were a few trained knights among the bunch, they were still unable to fully control their undisciplined men.

Kael let another arrow loose towards the head of a commanding officer. The mercenaries looked around but were unable to find the source of the arrow. Kael let them feel the fear of invisible death lurking around them. This act served to demoralize enemy forces and send them into a panic with some running away. Unfortunately, as much as he would like to get them all he didn't have enough arrows for everyone.

He was even forced to use two to three arrows on some of the summoned demons. From what he had seen so far the enemy forces was a coalition of warlocks, knights, mercenaries, and bandits. He was not surprised that the city was burning right now. Instead he was surprised at how they were able to get inside like this in the first place.

"AYIYIYIYIYIYIYIYIYI!" a loud cry echoed throughout the area.

Kael turned his eyes to locate where that unusual war cry was coming from. He was sure only a certain hotheaded gnome shouted like that when he went into battle.

Surely enough, Kael was able to find his party members helping defend the gates of the city with a squadron of paladins. Archers stood at the walls, firing arrows into the fray. They were locked in a pincer movement by enemy forces from both outside and inside. But still, the gates had not yet fallen. It was mostly due to the difference in quality between the two forces.

The paladins while small, were an elite force that was well-disciplined and organized. Their enemies, though outnumbering them by more than ten to one were dying like weeds as they were funneled into a tight location which favored the group of paladins. It was a one-sided slaughter at the moment, but who knew how long they could keep it up before exhaustion took its inevitable toll. After all, quantity did possess a quality of its own.

Kael was able to find the key figures in this group of enemies. He saw three warlocks step forward and begin chanting. Warlocks were tricky enemies to deal with, especially the ones whose appearances were straying into more demonic than human forms. Fortunately, these warlocks still looked closer to humans and most likely not too far along their path.

Without hesitation, he let his arrows loose. The explosion of gore and immediate death that followed further demoralized the enemy. The warlocks' heads popped like a watermelon as the arrows hit them in the head. He had been expecting some form of resistance but he supposed they were killed before they could bring up any magical defenses to bear.

Kael soon heard another explosion. Moments later, an unholy cry echoed across the city. The smell of _alien chaos _grew stronger once again. Kael turned towards the direction of the source from his vantage point atop the merchant building.

He spotted Uther Lightbringer fighting against two demons by himself. The first demon was a red humanoid with a crown of horns on his head; its massive body easily outsized the Elite Paladin by more than twice. What put Uther even more of a disadvantage was the winged demonic warlock behind him. His movements were slow and strained as if he was being bound by chains, and his skin was turning purple.

Green flames sprouted from the demon's arms towards the Paladin. Kael could see the strain and suffering Uther was under. Even someone as powerful as him was being pushed back by the combined might of the two creatures.

Kael grabbed another arrow from his quiver. He only had less than a dozen left. The thousand arrows that he filled his dimensional quiver with previously filled with were already depleted to this extent. _'It should be enough for a bit longer'_ he thought.

With a bit more of concentration, he altered the arrow to be sleeker, sharper, and more durable as he moved his energy through his bow. Though it was made of a magic metal, it was still not durable enough to take more than a few reinforced shots. He estimated the bow's life at a total of seven shots. But still, he needed enough power to kill that demonic warlock in a single hit.

Demonic warlocks were troublesome enemies. This one's appearance was already undoubtedly beyond a human. The fel energy had corrupted him to turn him into an immortal demon.

He only had one chance at this to take him down quickly.

With steady aim and controlled breath, he let loose his arrow towards the warlock. Kael saw it collide with a spherical blue shield that strained against it. He grimaced, that was not part of the plan.

He quickly nocked another arrow but the demon warlock was already able to locate him within that span of time. Kael let the arrow loose and leapt off the building. A second later, he felt the fire scorching of his back as he deftly landed on roof of a lower building. Kael saw the winged demon heading towards him with a green flame in its hands. He was forced to do another roll as he evaded the fireballs being rained down upon him. He prepared another arrow while evading his pursuer's attacks.

Kael narrowly evaded to the right just as a green fireball exploded where he had been standing a moment before. His body felt the heat released from the explosion showing how close it really was.

"Xera! Do you have any advice on killing immortal beings!"

[Xera advises Kael to destroy the demon's physical shell to banish him to the Twisted Nether. But with Kael's current strength, he is unable to penetrate the warlock's mana shield. Xera advises Kael to channel the _Light_'_s _energy to strengthen his arrows.]

"HOW!?" Kael shouted while making a dash to the left. Another fireball exploded behind him.

[Kael must use the skill 'Arcane Shot'. But he must filter the light from the arcane energy. Xera will assist Kael in this endeavor. There will be slight changes on Kael's physical appearance when channeling light-]

"Just do it!" He shouted as he felt a fireball tag him on his right arm. He grimaced in pain. This was why he hated flying enemies. More specifically, he hated magical flying creatures specifically trying to kill him.

Kael noted he had reached the end of the business district and was about to reach the residential area. No choice he noted, he had to end this here and now. There was a greater chance of some innocent bystander getting hurt if he prolonged this any further, especially since he was already seeing a few civilians below.

He reinforced the bow in his hands to take one last empowered shot. He followed the knowledge that was flowing into his mind. He felt a slight imbalance in his movements as he felt his body change. However, he focused on the task at hand.

_Light energy is the representation of order. It neither good nor evil, it is merely a force. Light exists as a fundamental existence in the universe. _

Kael allowed the energy of _light _to course through him. It was like he had been using this power for years. He felt the strange energy temporarily bind a part of himself. Constructs of light formed behind him in the form of wings.

As he leapt of from the rooftop, he turned in the air and aimed at the demon. With a smirk, he let it loose.

The arrow he used this time was one of his rare mithril tipped arrows. Combined with the _light_, the arrow appeared like a beam of holy energy going straight through the demon.

The arrow was able to shatter the flickering mana shield and blew a hole on the demon's body. The confused expression on the it's face told him it did not expect that. Slowly, as the demon disintegrated, it exploded into a shower of colorful crystals.

Kael let out a satisfied laugh as he fell towards the ground. With catlike reflexes, he landed without injury. Kael looked at the remnants of his bow. Sadly it was beyond repair, it was a waste. There were very few bows that were able to take his reinforcement as far as this one had.

Around him, the stunned expressions on the people's faces as they looked at him confused him. He felt the construct of light behind him fade away but the remains of the energy remained.

He mindlessly unsheathed the swords at his side and parried a strike from a mercenary. With the man's guard open from the attack, he cut him down. He had landed right in enemy territory, Kael thought with grim amusement. His eyes turned hard and he let his magical energy reinforce himself to the limit, along with it he channeled the _light _energy once again.

His movements became faster, his muscles stronger. But the strange feeling as he moved slightly disturbed him. He ignored this in favor of focusing on the battle.

It was a slaughter.

The mercenaries were outclassed in skill, weaponry, and physical capability. Not even the knights provided a challenge. Some of the mercenaries decided to either surrender or flee. He spared them. A part of his mind told him to cut them all down but he quashed it.

With blood dripping from his body, he made his way towards the Paladin barracks. He arrived at the scene of a wounded Arthas piercing his sword into the demon from behind. Uther was leaning on his Warhammer for support, barely able to stand.

The last of the _Light energy _faded from his body.

"Why? Why!? How could we possibly have failed! Where had it all gone wrong!?" The demon shouted while keeling over. "I'll remember this! I'll remember this you foolish mort-" Kael chose to slice the demon's head in half to stop its uninspired threats.

He approached Uther who had fallen to the ground unable to stand up any longer. His lips were purple and his veins were visibly bulging from his face. "Get me a rejuvenation potion." Uther hoarsely said.

Kael turned towards Arthas who was fumbling in his pockets. He brought out a heart shaped bottle containing a pink colored liquid. Kael stared at it dubiously but proceeded open and flip the bottle into Uther's mouth. The Elite Paladin's complexion slowly returned to normal with each gulp. Only then did Kael notice something was off.

He stared at Uther's right arm, or rather, where it used to be. The wound had been cauterized to stop the bleeding but it was not healing. Kael could smell faint traces of the _alien _magic on it.

He stared at the wound but hesitated.

Kael was brought out of his reverie when a paladin approached them. He recognized the man as the trainer he had met this morning.

"Is Sir Uther alright?" The man asked with concern.

"He is fine but his hand..." Kael pointed towards the stump.

"That, I'm sure we'll be to get help in healing it from Church of Light. Do not worry about that milady."

Kael did not pay attention to the words in favor of examining wound. He was staring at the stump as it healed in a near cellular manner. But the malefic energy yet remained.

He stood up and looked at the disintegrating body of the demon.

"Sir Dryden, is there no way to permanently kill a demon?" Kael asked.

"I'm afraid not, demons are immortal. We have known of demons in the past that had been killed multiple times but still continue to reappear. There are very few cases where demons have been claimed to have truly died but we cannot verify those claims nor do we know what the condition were." The paladin trainer answered.

Kael approached the corpse and placed his palm on it. He covertly cast analysis on the corpse while muttering.

"Appraise."

[Brer'thaver

Class: Warrior

Level 75

Race: Demon

Description: ...-]

The description was missing.

[A demon can only be killed in the Twisting Nether or a land saturated in fel. There has been no known method available of killing them.]

Kael ignored Xera. The thought had entered his mind ever since he seen the vision of his undead self from Medivh. Demons could not be killed. In a sense, they were similar to Heroic Spirits from his previous world. Demon's souls returned to the Twisting Nether when their bodies were destroyed. But that monster, Kael'drin refused to acknowledge him, that Undead Ruler killed the demons.

He tried to remember what he saw. He understood how he did it... but there was something missing.

'**Καταβρέξτε τις ψυχές τους.'**

Kael pulled his hand back as if it had been burned.

'**Καταβρέξτε τις ψυχές τους.'**

The foreign voice whispered to him. He did not understand the words that were said to him, but he understood the intent... because it was his own voice that spoke to him.

"Devour their souls..."

Kael's eyes glazed over as green wisps of energy from the corpse gathered into his palm.

"**Devour** **them**."

"**Καταβρέξτε τις ψυχές τους."**

The last thing Kael remembered was the burning pain that threatened to constrict his heart that spread to the rest of his body and made him faint.

* * *

-**IV**-

Arthas stared worried at Kael as she lay there unmoving. He didn't quite care about Kael's gender anymore. The strange feeling in his chest worsened as he stared the elf's unmoving form. That gallant figure whom did not fear the constraints of gender and wielded a bow and blade better than any man.

He admired Kael's strength and character. The elf was the first person who was not of nobility to ever speak against him. He did not understand his own feelings. Was he attracted to Kael as a man was to a woman or did he simply admire the elf because Kael seemed unobtainable? Man desires that which they cannot obtain or so they say.

Arthas still wasn't sure why Kael was hiding her gender. He was sure that Kael was using some kind of expensive artifact to hide his true face. Then he remembered Sir Uther's words.

'_Kael is someone of great importance among the elvese. Make sure no harm befalls her. The Light only knows war may happen if something happened to her. Be persistent and follow her whenever possible. But do not let her know that what I have told you.'_

Arthas walked to the window to shift aside the curtains, letting the cool air enter. He went back towards the bed and fixed Kael's blanket. He went back to his seat to contemplate about the complicated matters that Kael represented.

Within the city, Kael's fame was steadily growing as rumors spread about the Angel of War who fell from the heavens. The rumors took a life of their own as every one of them became wilder than the last.

They say the Angel was an unequaled beauty. They say that no blade or arrow could ever injure the Angel. They say that the Angel was a daughter of Elune, the Night elven God, and the Light, the manifestation of Order. The rumors had grown so exaggerated to the point that a cult of her had even begun. In a way perhaps it was a small mercy that main subject of these talks wasn't awake to hear all this. For surely the former Counter Guardian would groan in sheer frustration vexed at the absurdity of it all.

"Hey did you really see the Angel?"

"I did! I tell ya, who else could it be when she flew up to the sky and the moon shone down on 'er, the winged demon was pierced by a beam of light!"

"I was on the roof when I saw her too! She was so beautiful..."

"Bah! You haven't seen what I seen! Yester night we were battling' with thousands! Our backs were to the wall when she dropped from the heavens like an Angel of Light. With her swords which were made from the stars of the night and rays of the sun, no arrow touched her and even the enemies' spears were turned aside with but a gaze!"

"Hey Edric, you believe any of that shit?"

"I'm not really sure either."

"Huh? Don't tell you believe in that steaming pile o' shit. I took you for someone smarter than that."

"It's not that. I was saved thrice yesterday because of arrows that were coming out of nowhere. I should have died several times over but I didn't. I'm pretty sure there was no archer around where I was fighting from either."

"Beautiful? Keh, they didn't see her when she was dripping with blood and showered with guts."

Said subject of the rumors was still currently asleep and they did not know when the elf would awake. Two nights had already passed and the news about the event had spread out even more.

Arthas heard a knock at the door. He stood up, annoyed. At the door were Kael's party members, the pervert gnome and the suspicious gnoll.

"May we please enter, your Highness?" The gnoll asked politely.

Arthas nodded stiffly and moved out of the way as the two entered the room, a short while later, another knock was heard.

Eglef elected to open it himself. Jaina then entered the room uninvited. She was surprised when she saw the two.

"How are you Eglef? Kethan?" Jaina asked.

"We are doing fine, Lady Jaina. Might I ask how the rebuilding is going along? "Eglef asked.

"It's going better than I had expected. The Adventurer's Guild even asked me to pass along a message to my teacher. They want wizards to help with the effort. In exchange the guild is sharing the rights to the dungeon." Jaina replied.

"That's... very generous of the Guild." Eglef said while stroking his chin in thought.

"I'm not telling more than that!" Jaina exclaimed when Eglef looked at her.

"Yes, I would not be so presumptuous milady. But I already have a few guesses on what the adventurer's guild want. I don't doubt wizards would let this go either. It's a rare opportunity provided by the dungeon itself after all..."

"Eh? How'd you know that already? I thought it would take you a few more days before you'd catch on to it. You're really sharp Eglef! Hey, do you want to learn magic as Kael's substitute? I can't really teach him as he is right now." Jaina said while looking at the elf.

"Apologies milady, I appreciate the offer but it was with our leader that you have made a deal with. It would be rude of me to accept such an opportunity in his stead." Eglef said.

The gnome had been quiet for the entire conversation, which was surprising to say the least. Until they saw he was just asleep anyway.

"Kethan must be tired after running himself ragged yesterday. There were a lot of criminals among the ones who attacked the city. I doubt most of them surrendered willingly." Jaina said.

"It's something we cannot possibly miss, multiple quests which will be added to our party's name. With this, it should be possible for us to become the first Adamantium ranked party upon the coming examinations." Eglef said.

"So you're also joining in on that? Then I'll let you know, the last and greatest part of the exams are actually just fighting matches. It's part of the effort from the guild to reassure the people they're still there." Jaina said.

"You have impressive and extensive information network as always milady." Eglef said in praise.

"Hehe, Arthas always calls me brash. I'm actually really smart though! By the way... uh, do you know what happened to Kael?" Jaina asked.

"We do not have clue, unfortunately. During that time, just as we left the dungeon, news of the attack was already spreading within the city. We had chosen to provide our assistance where we knew we were most needed. That being the gates as you might have heard." Eglef said.

"Yeah, I'd heard similar things from some adventurers. They're saying there's something like a time lag when they left the dungeon. When, I checked this morning everything seemed to be alright... and yeah, Kael was worried when you didn't show up from the dungeon. Luckily nothing bad happened." Jaina said.

"We need be thankful for the small blessings in life milady." Eglef said.

"I can't wait for Kael to wake up! I just hope he'll take those rumors well. I think he might go berserk if he actually hears that a statue of him as the Angel is being built near the dungeon..." Jaina said.

"I shall do my utmost best to allow no such event to happen... but I make no promises" Eglef muttered in a low voice.

A bloodbath would most likely ensue if he learned about it.

* * *

-**V**-

Aiden Perenole, the rightful King and ruler of Alterac raged in his throne room. The messenger who had brought forth the news quailed under his gaze.

"Fail! That demon failed! But he said he would bring me Uther's head! Damn incompetents! All of them!"

The King's guards stared impassively at the man beneath the woman beneath the King's feet. Her face was beyond recognizable as the King beat her with his scepter. They could not let any weakness show on their faces as they grit their teeth. Any word of opposition would be dealt with harshly. Not just them, even their families would suffer.

That was why no one helped the whimpering woman who was being beaten to death. Better her than our wives or daughters they all thought even if some regretted their inaction.

After the King's tantrum was over, he discarded his bloody scepter and marched out of the room.

His destination was the Wizard Tower. But rather than a wizard's it would be more appropriate to call it a Warlock's tower. A door in the tower was loudly slammed open as the King walked into the room. A gaunt robed man walked to meet the King.

"What can I do for you, your Majesty?" The warlock asked.

"The demon we sent to Stratholme has failed! What can we do about it!?" The King asked.

"Your Majesty... was it not you who suggested it? You said you wanted Uther Lightbringer dead... but we don't have enough-"

"Silence! Silence! The failure is still your fault! Now tell me, do we still have enough forces to attack the Capital City!? I will not tolerate more failure than this!" The King said.

"Of course your Majesty. We have accounted for failures. Please do not worry. The Kingdom of Lordaeron will soon be yours... now please calm yourself. Now... why don't you visit the new slaves we have your Majesty? I hear they have brought in some beauties recently? Please do not worry about our plans... we have everything under control..." The warlock persuaded the King.

The King's eyes gleamed like a child's at the warlock's words.

"Very well… I will forgive you this one time. But I still want Uther Lightbringer dead!" The King said and turned back out of the room.

Making sure he was gone, the warlock dropped the pleasant and submissive attitude he previously displayed.

"Humph, disgusting fool. It was simple how easily he was influenced further by _fel_ energies. He only needed a small nudge to give in to his desires." The warlock said.

A small winged shadow appeared beside him the imp landed on his shoulders and spoke.

"Why don't you just kill that thing? He seems very unpleasant. Why do you continue to take orders from it?" The demon asked.

"He is necessary for our plans. My deal with that person is to weaken the Kingdoms of Lordaeron. Even if he fails, that would still fulfill my objective." The warlock said as he walked back to his lair.

"It's a pity this entire event turned out to be a waste of resources. We sent ten apprentice warlocks hoping they could return with some experience but instead they were all killed. How unfortunate…" The warlock said. "Still, they were able to gather valuable information for us... including the existence of that high elf."

"Isn't it someone sent by the High Council? She could just be a spy." The demon said.

"It is a likely possibility. Sadly, we don't have any information about the warriors of Quel'thalas... but I am very interested in her. An elf who does not just contain fel energy... but produces it. If Brer'thaver was saying the truth that is..." The warlock said.

"I still doubt it. A being that naturally produces fel energy but is neither a demon or an evil creature? Brer'thaver might have made a mistake." The demon said.

"Even so... it is worth looking into. Don't you think?" The warlock said.

"I don't really care. As long as we cause enough chaos and I get to eat I'm fine. "The demon said.

The warlock chuckled.

"Yes. Chaos... with chaos comes opportunity... We will throw Azeroth into the fires so that I may gain the chance for more power..." The warlock said as he stared at the large amount of fel energy being gathered into a large man sized sphere that was placed above his abode's ceiling.

The negativity and death from below was being absorbed into the round clear orb making the energy within turn from greenish to red. The wails of despair from the trapped souls tickled the warlock's ears.

"With this power... we will become Gods among men..."

* * *

Note:

I have a perfectly valid reason (read: excuse - it's not because I just added it for the lols or something...maybe) why Arthas is actually drawn to Kael, and a few others would too. Not gonna explain it here though.

Added note:

Kael is a Male, gonna explain it a bit here since most of you guys seem to allergic to the gender bender genre, it's not that bad right? Okay before I go off tangent again here's a hint. Something happened when Kael accepted Xera's proposal during the mini boss fight.

Also, I'll be accepting some of your suggestions for party members. Not gonna say it her either. That would be spoiling. If you're observant though, you'll notice that I don't like stereotpyes. So the unusual ones are likely to be added.

To answer some reviews(I'm not gonna answer some reviews for the character suggestions cause that would be telling):

**Rankin de Merthyr**: Yeah, that's where my inspiration for Anna(Nana) came from. Awesome novel with great humor.

**ATiredDude**: Thanks. I dunno if I could make it work. But I'll do my best to develop all of them though. I welcome feedback if you think I'm ignoring one character tho.

**PharmPotato**: Uh.. for the energy... wait. I think I explained that bit or something but I'll just have to emphasize it on the coming chapters then. Screen time for Arthas and Jaina? it will actually take time for me to show all the characters. More so because of how many more I'll be adding but you'll just have to see on the upcoming chaps.

**Nyanmato: **A sword maiden or priestess eh? I like the sound of that. But you'll have to get something else... which I won't answer either, hehe. :P

**plums**: The timeline at this point is 4 years before the plague actually. So expect some upcoming time skips after this arc. Further event about other places will be on the upcoming interlude. And I'm not gonna answer question about the plot either.

**vincentiusnatalus**: I'm actually gonna try something similar but altogether different from what you just said about a Universal class, look forward to it. :D

**chm01**: He is still a knight/paladin trainee at this point so yeah. He doesn't have his hamma yet

**REQUIEMCROSS**: Not gonna answer plot questions.. sorry 'bout that. You'll just have to wait for it.

**Aesir19**: Not gonna say anything 'bout the character suggestions as stated above. But yeah, I don't like overusing the gamer element either. Makes an otherwise good story bland sometimes.

**SoSlimShady**: I guess that's a valid question I'm allowed to answer. He'll probably have 4, but I'll add one more if it works. Can't really tell because the story seems to be writing itself. lol. I'm not going beyond 5 though, I swear on that.

**OnyxReaper1**: I did read Overlord, stoped at Vol 11 tho, and yeah. I remember Momonga doing something like that. I'm gonna consider your suggestion though and thanks for that.

Cya all next chapter which would still be Thursday(PST) next week.


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